Airtimes:  
Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Singapore and Taipei
Wednesday, February 17 at 2130
Saturday, February 20 at 2000
Sunday, February 21 at 0430 & 1730
Monday, February 22 at 0730 
Bangkok and Jakarta

Wednesday, February 17 at 2030
Thursday, February 18 at 1130 & 2130
Saturday, February 20 at 1900
Sunday, February 21 at 0330 & 1630
Monday, February 22 at 0630

Li Na rewrote China's tennis history with a forehand winner at the Rod Laver Arena, taking down seven-time Grand Slam winner Venus Williams in the process. She and compatriot Zheng Jie are the first two Chinese women to have simultaneously made it into the last four of a Grand Slam tournament at the Australian Open semi-finals.  Li also became the first Chinese tennis player to rank in the WTA top ten.  Fresh off the back of her success in Melbourne, China's Queen of the Court speaks to CNN's Anjali Rao on TALK ASIA in a wide-ranging discussion about her triumphs, occasional tantrums and even her famous tattoo.

The memory of that last set against Venus Williams clearly still lingers: "I was 40-15, two match points. I lost! I was like ‘Oh my God, what do I do now?' And then I was hitting many shots. I got the match point. I was looking up at the sky and I was like ‘please, let me win this point, only one point. It doesn't matter if I can win or not later. I just want one point'," and she recalls the very moment when she won that point, "After I won, I wanted to cool down. I didn't want to jump. But I didn't know why I just jumped so high. I never knew I could jump so high like that!"

Despite losing to Serena the next day, the 27-year-old  still holds her top ten position in the rankings and is confident that she can beat Williams the next time they meet : "Everyone knows how strong and how good she is. But I was feeling like ‘ok, maybe I lost this, but maybe next time I can beat her' because we played a close match, so there's still a chance for me."

Hailed by Chinese tennis fans and the media as "golden flowers", Li and Zheng have marked the country's ascent to a tennis power to be reckoned with. The Wuhan native shrugs off any rivalry between the two stars: "Actually before, when we were still in the national team, we saw each other everyday and we always practised together. But now we just see each other in the tournament. I am happy for her (for reaching semi-final). I would like all my friends to be at the top ten."

Off court, Li's rose tattoo and outspoken temperament comes in stark contrast to China's usually quiet and reserved sportswomen. She further cemented her rebellious reputation with an angry outburst - "Shut up!" directed to the crowd at the Beijing Olympics. "I talked to the chair umpire four or five times, I said ‘they can be loud but not between the points.' I continued to go to the chair umpire but they didn't listen. I know they wanted me to play good tennis, to play in the final or win the gold medal. I wanted this too but I was nervous. I was feeling like ‘please, I just want to play tennis. I just want them to be quiet between the points'."

 Li has rarely talked about the incident in interviews but explains why she is apologetic to her fans: "Next time, I will continue to talk to the chair maybe five, six, seven or twenty times. I would never say this word to the fans. I know it's bad for them, also bad for me, because fans for players are like sponsors, I couldn't do that for the fans! Maybe next time I will have more experience. I will reply and say quiet please!"

She also reveals her decision to leave the state sporting system, her relationship with her husband (who is also her coach) and why she predicts a top 50 world ranking male tennis player will emerge from China in five years.

Li Na's interview with TALK ASIA will be available online at www.cnn.com/talkasia after the first airing.

For more information, please visit www.CNNPressroomAsia.com.

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