MICHAEL Chang will become a tennis missionary in Beijing in October - and hopes to lead China out of the international wilderness.
Chang, the 21-year-old world number nine from the United States, announced yesterday he would be playing in the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Tour Salem Open in Beijing from October 18-24 rather than the Marlboro Championships exhibition tournament in Hongkong the same week.
Before boarding a San Francisco-bound flight out of the territory, Chang said: ''The unfortunate thing about the whole situation is that they fall in the same week. That particularly hurts me because I would love to have played in both.
''Hopefully next year or a couple of years down the road things will change.'' Chang has played in two exhibition matches in Beijing but feels the official ranking tournament can spark major interest.
''I read a newspaper article this morning which said only 100,000 people play tennis in China and I found that very frustrating. You can get more than that back home in Orange County.
''I think it's a great sport for people of all ages to play. I started at six or seven and people are still playing at 90. It's good exercise and you get to meet people and make new friends.