But he added that it was possible that Yao junior could outgrow the father. In a vote held by sina.com, 29,000 Internet users agreed that Yao junior will be taller than 2.05 meters while 12,592 others believed that the child's height could exceed 2.2 meters.

Yao Ming and Ye Li both played center in China's national men's and women's basketball teams. Yao is 2.26 meters tall and Ye 1.9 meters.

Miao said the couple had wanted a boy, fearing that a girl might be too tall among her peers. A story on sina.com, however, quoted an anonymous source as saying the baby would be a girl.

The place of the delivery also drew speculation as it would decide the child's nationality. Many feared the baby could be born in the United States, making it an American citizen.

Ye is currently at the couple's home in Shanghai and the couple were yet to decide where the child would be born, said Zhang Chi. "It's a personal matter. Please respect their decision."

Zhang declined to reveal or comment on the gender of the baby and its expected date of birth.

"Please give Yao and Ye more room for privacy to face this significant transition in their lives," Zhang requested of the media and the public.

Yao, 29, and Ye, 28, both single children, were married in 2007.

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