Two years ago, Chinese tennis star Li Na won the Australian Open, winning the hearts of fans around the world with a victory speech that went viral, while also proving that her first major title at Roland Garros three years beforehand had not been a fluke.

Since Li's injury-enforced retirement 16 months ago, the world has been waiting to see who might take her place.

And the wait shows no signs of ending.

Since that point, half a dozen Chinese female players have spent time in the world's top 100, but only one now is - Zheng Saisai, ranked 85th. If Zheng were to win in Melbourne at the Australian Open, which kicks off next week, it would be her first singles win on the WTA Tour.

It's not exactly evidence of a new generation of stars ready to take over the tennis world.

China's men have long lagged the women in on-court heroics, and things appear to be getting worse: This will be the first time in four years that no Chinese man will appear in the Australian Open's main draw, despite the introduction of a wildcard tournament that is heavily weighted in favor of Chinese representation.

But it's not all doom and gloom.

Olivier Grignard, a Belgian coach who has worked with several of China's top young players, says he's optimistic about the long-term prognosis for Chinese tennis.

China currently has eight girls in the top 100 of the world junior rankings and even the boys have two, with Wu Yibing at the lofty height of No.25.

Much has been made of the lack of Chinese male ­tennis stars, with Grignard's take that the traditional preference for boys in China leads to male players who have less individual drive due to too much coddling early on.

In addition, he says, it's easier for the girls to adjust their games to disguise a lack of technical ability that is still missing at the top levels in China.

But one girl he has worked with, Xu Shilin, who won gold at the Youth Olympic Games in 2014, was "born to play tennis," according to Grignard. "She has huge potential, and is really talented," but adds that there are still so many unknown factors for any player to reaching the very top.

So when will Li's successor emerge?

"The girls can have a surprise in 4-5 years, I think. The boys in 6-7 years, or maybe longer."

Patience, then, is the virtue, but Li's success has made Chinese fans hungry for more - sooner rather than later.

The author is a Beijing-based freelance writer. dreyermark@gmail.com