After an outstanding 2016 season, #NextGen star Frances Tiafoe is looking to put the final pieces of the puzzle together to crack the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings by the end of the year.

The 18 year old American has climbed more than 50 spots to reach his current career-high Emirates ATP Ranking of No. 121. He won his first ATP Challenger Tour title last month at the $100,000 event in Granby, Canada, and finished runner-up at three Challenger events on U.S. soil. With the exception of Granby, all five of his other Challenger finals have come in the U.S.

Tiafoe is hoping for a repeat moment at this week’s $100,000 Challenger in Tiburon, California, where he is the fourth seed. He plays fellow American Alexander Sarkissian in the opening round.

“I don’t know why, but I always find myself playing so well in the U.S. It’s almost too easy here,” said Tiafoe. “You know everyone who works at the tournaments and know your way around. I feel more comfortable at them and that’s when I play my best tennis. But I’m also trying to change that and start to feel more comfortable playing abroad as well.”

The American has emerged as a promising standout on the ATP Challenger Tour, but introduced himself to a broader audience at this year’s US Open. Competing against John Isner in the opening round, he held two match points before falling in a fifth-set tie-break in front of a packed house on the Grandstand.

“It was an atmosphere I’ve never experienced before. The crowd was going absolutely wild,” said Tiafoe. “To be able to play like that on a court like that against one of the best Americans gave me a tremendous amount of confidence. I just want to run with that now.”

But while Tiafoe played without pressure last season, he’s now being touted as one of the favorites to win at every Challenger he plays. Although he admitted it took getting used to initially, being a top contender has quickly become a natural role for someone who thrives on playing big matches in front of packed crowds.

“It’s a different feeling. This summer was the first time I’ve been seeded in Challengers and now I’m supposed to be going deep every time I play,” said Tiafoe. “But at the same time, that means I’m playing well and getting closer to the Top 100. This is what I want.”

Russian #NextGen star Karen Khachanov and 17-year-old Norwegian Casper Ruud, in China for the Chengdu Open, visited one of Chengdu’s unique attractions, Kuanzhai Alley, which translates as Wide and Narrow Alley, on Monday.

Located in one of the oldest parts of Chengdu, dating back to the Qing Dynasty, Kuanzhai Alley offers a unique glimpse into the architecture at the time. The players tried some of the city’s most popular snacks, while being entertained by a traditionally attired Sichuan opera performer.

“The culture is here is very unusual and it is very interesting to see,” said Khachanov. “I’m very excited to be here. I like it.”

“The architecture here is very nice and very different from anywhere else,” said Ruud. “It’s nice.”

Tea For Two In Chengdu

On Sunday morning, ATP World Tour players Kevin Anderson of South Africa and John Millman of Australia also took time to experience the Chengdu culture. The two visited the historic Wenshu Monastery, located in the centre of Chengdu city.

They received a crash course in the art of “Chang Zui Hu”, the ancient Chengdu practice of pouring tea out through an extremely long spout. Combining martial arts with technical ability, this unique practice was created as a form of entertainment in local tea houses many hundreds of years ago. “It was really cool,” said Anderson. “Just the whole architecture and this whole place is incredible.”

“I enjoyed it. It’s pretty special to be able to experience the cultures of such an old country like China,” said Millman. “It was a lot of fun. It was something different. I’m always up for new, exciting experiences.”

This is the first year of the Chengdu Open, an ATP World Tour 250 level tournament.

Former World No. 10 Juan Monaco required 66 minutes to beat qualifier Hiroki Moriya 6-1, 6-2 on Monday at the Chengdu Open. Monaco will next face fourth seed Feliciano Lopez, whom he beat in the Houston semi-finals en route to his ninth ATP World Tour title (d. Sock) in April.

Diego Schwartzman, who lifted his first ATP World Tour trophy in Istanbul (d. Dimitrov) earlier this year, knocked out Rajeev Ram 6-4, 7-5 in 87 minutes. He awaits the winner of eighth seed Paolo Lorenzi or John Millman. “The first match is always tough for the players,” said Schwarztman. “I feel great, so it’s good to win… I try to improve every week.”

In doubles, fourth seeds Pablo Carreno Busta and Mariusz Fyrstenberg defeated wild card Yan Bai and Di Wu 6-2, 6-7(2), 10-6 in 89 minutes, while Nicholas Monroe and Artem Sitak lost just seven of their first service points in a 6-3, 1-6, 10-4 victory over Federico Delbonis and Paolo Lorenzi in 63 minutes.

Fabio Fognini recorded his 20th match win of the season on Monday when the seventh seed defeated Dudi Sela 6-4, 6-1 in 78 minutes on his debut at the Shenzhen Open. He’ll next face qualifier Mischa Zverev who struck eight aces and won 96 per cent of his first service points to oust wild card Zhe Li. Zverev leads Fognini 2-1 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series.

Andrew Whittington saved four match points in the second set tie-break to force a third set and beat fellow qualifier Luca Vanni 2-6, 7-6(10), 6-2 in two hours and 20 minutes. The 23-year-old Australian, making his ATP World Tour main draw debut, will next face third seed Richard Gasquet in the second round.

In doubles, Jonathan Erlich and Santiago Gonzalez saved one match point at 8/9 in the Match Tie-break to knock out Lukas Rosol and Jiri Vesely 6-7(5), 6-2, 11-9 in one hour and 46 minutes.

DAY 2 PREVIEW: The No. 1 Chinese player in the Emirates ATP Rankings comes home on Tuesday for his first ATP World Tour match of 2016. Ze Zhang is 4-0 on tour this season, with all four wins coming in Davis Cup Group I. The 26 year old from Nanjing is in a unique position against Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia, whom he defeated at a Challenger event in Chengdu last month. For just the second time in 20 ATP and Grand Slam main draw matches, Zhang is ranked higher than his opponent. Tipsarevic, a former World No. 8, is 45 spots below Zhang at No. 224 after missing seven of the past 12 months with foot and knee injuries.

Also in first-round action on Centre Court is No. 6 seed Benoit Paire. The Frenchman enjoyed a breakout season in 2015, winning five titles in eight finals across the ATP World Tour, ATP Challenger Tour and ITF Futures Circuit. Playing exclusively at tour-level events in 2016, Paire has yet to reach a final and fallen from a career-high No. 18 on 11 January to No. 38 this week. Paire has suffered five losses this season to players ranked outside of the Top 100. His opponent on Tuesday is 103rd-ranked Nikoloz Basilashvili.

Play begins on Centre Court with 2015 Shenzhen Open runner-up Guillermo Garcia-Lopez taking on American qualifier Ryan Harrison. Garcia-Lopez has not reached a singles final since falling to Tomas Berdych here last year, but he did play in back-to-back doubles finals earlier this season. He won the Winston-Salem Open title with Henri Kontinen and fell in the US Open final with fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta.

Among the players competing on the outer courts are Pablo Andujar of Spain and 19 year old Akira Santillan of Japan. Andujar is appearing at his first ATP event since undergoing right elbow surgery on 17 March, while Santillan will be playing the second tour-level match of his career. The wild card fell to Jan-Lennard Struff at Kitzbuhel on 19 July. In doubles, No. 1 seeds Treat Huey and Max Mirnyi continue their quest for qualification at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals against Fognini and Robert Lindstedt.