Yao wants to play at world champs

Injured Houston Rockets centre Yao Ming wants to be part of China's world championship campaign next year if he gets approval from his doctor.

The 29-year-old, China's most popular sportsman, underwent surgery on a hairline fracture to his left foot in July and is almost certain to miss the whole of the 2009/10 NBA season.

His inclusion in the squad for the August 28 to September 12 tournament in Turkey next year would be a major boost to a China team that has struggled without him.

"Yao Ming has the will to play for the national team but it's not up to him. We have to get the permission of his doctor," the All Star's cousin Zhang Mingji, who heads up Team Yao, told the China Daily.

Some commentators have blamed Yao's frequent injuries on the stress to his body brought about by playing both in the NBA and for his country.

"Whether he can join the national squad or not depends on his condition but we know he is willing to do that and we will not put him under any pressure," Hu Jiashi of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) told the paper.