Tennis News

Brouwer, Munar save MPs en route to Challenger title runs

Gijs Brouwer and Jaume Munar saved match points en route to lifting trophies this past week on the ATP Challenger Tour.

While the 28-year-old Brouwer advanced through qualifying and went all the way to claim his maiden Challenger title, Munar triumphed at that level for a record-extending eighth consecutive season.

The Dutchman Brouwer downed home favourite and former World No. 10 Lucas Pouille 6-4, 7-6(2) in Sunday’s Saint-Tropez Open final. Brouwer saved two match points in the quarter-finals against Benjamin Bonzi, who was the only player all week to take a set off the lefty.

“It feels unbelievable. I was really trying for years to get [a Challenger title] and now I finally have one. I’m super happy,” Brouwer said. “The key this week was the mentality, being good in my head, always staying positive throughout the week. I just kept playing and didn’t think too much of the score. Just with a clean head every point and fight for every point.”

Munar, 27, won his 10th Challenger trophy at the Bad Waltersdorf Trophy in Austria. The top seed defeated Thiago Seyboth Wild 6-2, 6-1 in the final, a day after Munar fended off three match points to outlast American Nicolas Moreno De Alboran in the last four.

<img alt=”Jaume Munar is crowned champion at the Bad Waltersdorf Challenger.” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/24/14/34/munar-badwaltersdorfch-2024.jpg” />
^{Jaume Munar is crowned champion at the Bad Waltersdorf Challenger. Credit: Bad Waltersdorf Trophy}

In other Challenger action, Naoki Nakagawa survived an all-Japanese marathon final to be crowned champion at the Columbus Challenger. After three hours and 16 minutes, Nakagawa overcame James Trotter 7-6(8), 5-7, 7-6(5) to secure his maiden Challenger title.

Nakagawa, who upset top seed Christopher Eubanks in the quarter-finals, entered the week with a career 4-29 record in Challenger main-draw matches and had not won a main-draw match at that level since October 2023. Following his title run, the 27-year-old is up 94 spots in the PIF ATP Rankings to World No. 335, one spot shy of tying his career high.

Frenchman Valentin Royer won the BCR Sibiu Open in Romania, where he defeated countryman Luka Pavlovic 6-4, 6-0 in the final. The 23-year-old Royer, who was competing in his second Challenger final of the year, is up to a career-high World No. 182.

Argentine Juan Pablo Ficovich returned to the winners’ circle at the KIA Open in Cali, Colombia. The 27-year-old needed a deciding set in his first four matches before cruising past #NextGenATP Gonzalo Bueno 6-0, 6-4 in the title match. Ficovich avenged this past April’s Concepcion Challenger final loss to the 20-year-old.

Power pairs 🔥

Congrats to this week’s doubles champions! #ATPChallenger pic.twitter.com/OBOZmPyuYv

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) September 22, 2024

Source link

Doumbia/Reboul win Chengdu to boost Turin hopes

Competing at the Chengdu Open seems to bring out the best in Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul.

The top seeds on Tuesday clinched their second consecutive title at the Chinese hard-court ATP 250 with a 6-4, 4-6, 10-4 triumph against Yuki Bhambri and Albano Olivetti. Doumbia and Reboul won the first seven points of the Match Tie-break en route to claiming their third tour-level title of the season.

With their 96-minute win, Doumbia and Reboul also avenged their defeat to Bhambri and Olivetti in the teams’ only previous Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting earlier this season in Lyon. The French pair, which this week in Chengdu was competing together for the first time since Wimbledon, is now 31-15 for 2024.

Doumbia and Reboul’s latest title run has boosted their chances of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time. The duo has risen one spot to 14th in the PIF ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings as a result of its triumph in Chengdu.

Nedunchezhiyan/Prashanth Triumph In Hangzhou
At the Hangzhou Open, Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Vijay Sundar Prashanth rallied to their first ATP Tour title as a team with a 4-6, 7-6(5), 10-7 championship-match win against Constantin Frantzen and Hendrik Jebens.

Nedunchezhiyan and Prashanth won 80 per cent (39/49) of points behind their first serves, according to Infosys ATP Stats, in their one-hour, 49-minute victory. The Indian duo had played just one tour-level match together prior to Hangzhou, but went on to clinch four Match Tie-break victories at the hard-court ATP 250.

It was a second ATP Tour doubles crown for the 35-year-old Nedunchezhiyan, who also triumphed on home soil in Chennai in 2017 (w/Rohan Bopanna). Tuesday’s triumph in Hangzhou was the 37-year-old Prashanth’s maiden tour-level title.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

Source link

A typhoon, tears and a trophy! How Nishikori made Tokyo history in 2014

Sky-high expectations from home fans, lower back pain, a red-hot championship-match opponent with a near-untouchable serve, and an incoming typhoon playing havoc with the conditions. They were just some of the challenges faced by Kei Nishikori at the 2014 Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships.

The Japanese star overcame them all.

By defeating Milos Raonic in three sets to lift the trophy at his hometown event, Nishikori not only sent a capacity Ariake Coloseum crowd home happy. The then-24-year-old, who had also won in 2012 to join 1972 titlist Toshiro Sakai as a home Tokyo champion, became the first Japanese two-time winner in event history and just the fourth multiple titlist overall after ATP greats Stefan Edberg, Pete Sampras and Jim Courier.

Nishikori was long established as a huge star in Japan, but his achievements in 2014 prior to Tokyo had arguably elevated his profile to unprecedented levels. Just three weeks prior to the hard-court ATP 500, he had become the first Asian man to reach a Grand Slam singles final at the US Open. He defeated three Top 10 opponents in Raonic, Stan Wawrinka and World No. 1 Novak Djokovic en route.

Despite a painful defeat to Marin Cilic in the New York championship match, Nishikori bounced back by winning his third ATP Tour crown of the year in Kuala Lumpur. By the time he arrived in Tokyo, he had won 10 of his past 11 matches and reached a then-career-high No. 7 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

Nishikori did not take long to show his home fans first-hand the recent step up in his game. He raced to straight-sets victories in his opening three matches against Ivan Dodig, Donald Young and Jeremy Chardy, before rallying to a 4-6, 6-0, 7-6(2) semi-final triumph against Benjamin Becker.

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/13/13/02/nishikori-tokyo-2014-forehand.jpg?w=100%25&hash=F25812A29DEA85D691CEB9B1CE4BC608″ style=”width: 100%;” alt=”Kei Nishikori” />
_{^{Nishikori in second-round action against Donald Young during his 2014 Tokyo title run. Photo Credit: Koji Watanabe/Getty Images.}}

“This is an amazing feeling. This is my hometown, and I always feel a lot of support,” said Nishikori, whose lower back issue appeared to restrict his mobility at times against Becker.

Nishikori may have been well accustomed to competing in Tokyo, but so was his final opponent. The No. 8-ranked Raonic had not dropped a set all week en route to his third straight championship match in the Japanese capital. The Canadian was also looking to avenge his defeat to Nishikori in the first of those finals in 2012.

With Typhoon Phanfone forecast to bring heavy rains to Tokyo, Nishikori and Raonic’s final took place under a closed roof, but the change in conditions did not stop either player from competing well with the trophy on the line. Just as in the 2012 final, Nishikori clinched a tight first set in a tie-break before Raonic hit back to force a decider. Again it was Nishikori, roared on by his home fans, who found something extra at the death for a 7-6(5), 4-6, 6-4 victory.

<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/13/12/54/nishikori-raonic-tokyo-2014-final-handshake.jpg” style=”width: 100%;” alt=”Kei Nishikori/Milos Raonic” />

_{^{Nishikori and Milos Raonic embrace at the net after their 2014 Tokyo final clash. Photo Credit: Koji Watanabe/Getty Images}}

With his triumph, Nishikori sealed his fourth tour-level trophy of 2014, a tally that remains his personal best in a single ATP Tour season, and improved to 4-1 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with his Top 10 rival Raonic. After tearfully hugging his coach Michael Chang in the stands, an emotional Nishikori acknowledged how tough it had been to recover from his US Open disappointment.

“It has been incredible, and I think this is the first time I have won two weeks in a row,” he said. “After the US Open, it was hard to maintain the motivation. Being in the first final of a Grand Slam was my dream, so it was tough to change mentally.”

Nishikori’s Tokyo win contributed to him qualifying for the 2014 Nitto ATP Finals. Competing for the first time at the prestigious season finale in London, he defeated Andy Murray and David Ferrer before falling to Djokovic in the semi-finals. His career-best 54-14 season ultimately helped him reach his current career-high of No. 4 in the PIF ATP Rankings in March 2015.

This year, the 34-year-old Nishikori returns to Tokyo for his ninth appearance at the hard-court ATP 500, and his first since he reached his third final in 2018 (l. to Medvedev). The home favourite has played just 11 tournaments since 2021 due to injuries, but will no doubt seek to channel his trusty home support to improve on his 20-6 record at a tournament where his legacy has already been cemented.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

Source link

Scouting Report: Sinner, Alcaraz headline Beijing; Fritz, defending champ Shelton compete in Tokyo

The Asian swing is heating up, with excitement building as attention turns to two eagerly anticipated ATP 500 hard-court events in Beijing and Tokyo.

After clinching his second major crown at the US Open earlier this month, Jannik Sinner is back in action on the ATP Tour, bidding to successfully defend his title at the China Open against a stacked field that features Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev.

In Tokyo, past champions Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton are among the contenders for the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships title.

ATPTour.com looks at five things to watch at each event.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN BEIJING
1) Sinner’s title defence: Jannik Sinner soared to glory at last year’s China Open, defeating both Alcaraz and Medvedev as the sixth seed en route to the title. The Italian is now No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings, a two-time Grand Slam champion, and seemingly poised to successfully defend the title in Beijing.

2) Will Alcaraz bounce back? Carlos Alcaraz suffered a shocking defeat in the second round of the US Open to Botic van de Zandschulp and, after helping guide Team Europe to glory at the Laver Cup, the Spaniard will return to China with a point to prove. The 21-year-old sits third in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, 1,590 points ahead of Medvedev, and is pursuing his fourth title of the season.

3) Home hope Zhang: Chinese star Zhang Zhizhen returns to Beijing for the first time since 2019, when he fell to eventual champion Dominic Thiem in the second round. The explosive 27-year-old is coming into the tournament fresh off the back of a deep run at the Hangzhou Open, where he will play the final Tuesday, and offers plenty of hope for the home crowd. Other Chinese stars to watch will include #NextGenATP Shang Juncheng, who is competing in the Chengdu final Tuesday.

4) Can Medvedev avenge 2023 defeat? Daniil Medvedev fell short to Sinner in last year’s thrilling final in Beijing, but the 28-year-old will be eager to rewrite the script this time around if they are to cross paths. After his triumph over Medvedev in the US Open quarter-finals, Sinner has closed the gap to 6-7 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

5) Koolhof/Mektic chasing Turin spot: Wesley Koolhof and Nikola Mektic, who currently occupy ninth place in the PIF ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings, find themselves within touching distance of an all-important spot at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin, but they will need to put points on the board as they kick off their Asia swing in Beijing.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN TOKYO

1) Feel-good Fritz aiming for Turin: Taylor Fritz will be hoping to maintain the form that propelled him into a maiden major final at the US Open. The 26-year-old, who is enjoying his best season on Tour, is fifth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin and in strong contention to make his second appearance at the Nitto ATP Finals. Fritz starts against #NextGenATP Frenchman Arthur Fils in Tokyo.

Read Tokyo Draw Preview

2) Defending champ Shelton back in Tokyo: Ben Shelton returns to the site where he won his maiden ATP Tour title 12 months ago. It capped off a strong end to the 2023 season for the 21-year-old, who also made the semi-finals of the US Open. The American fell in the third round at Flushing Meadows this year to Frances Tiafoe in a blockbuster five-setter. The eighth seed plays countryman Reilly Opelka in the first round.

3) American threats at every turn: Fritz and Shelton are joined in the main draw by Tommy Paul and Frances Tiafoe, two other American men who also find themselves inside the Top 20 in the PIF ATP Rankings. Brandon Nakashima earned a special exempt spot due to his deep run at the Hangzhou Open. Paul is 11th in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin and 570 points behind eighth-placed Alex de Minaur, who is not competing in Tokyo due to injury.

4) Wild card for Nishikori: Two-time champion Kei Nishikori was granted a wild card to return to Tokyo for the first time since 2018. The former No. 4 in the PIF ATP Rankings has been hampered by injuries in recent times but is working his way back to full health with some impressive tennis. The 34-year-old reached the quarter-finals at the ATP Challenger Tour event in Genoa before coming up short against #NextGenATP Chinese lefty Shang in the first round of the Chengdu Open last week. 

5) Hurkacz, Ruud among stars to watch: The eight seeded players in the singles draw are all in the Top 20 of the PIF ATP Rankings. Other stars to watch are second seed Hubert Hurkacz, third seed Casper Ruud, fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and sixth seed Holger Rune. Ruud crucially is sixth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin and is trying to make his return to the Nitto ATP Finals after missing out one year ago.

Source link

Zverev withdraws from Beijing

Alexander Zverev has withdrawn from the China Open.

The German reached the semi-finals at the ATP 500 a year ago before losing to Daniil Medvedev.

Zverev leads the ATP Tour this season with 57 wins (57-18) according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. He won a title at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome and reached the final at Roland Garros and Hamburg.

The China Open draw will be made later Tuesday. Leading the field will be the No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Medvedev. Sinner defeated Medvedev in last year’s final.

Source link

Cobolli on learning from Alcaraz & leaving McDonald's behind

Good things come to those who wait.

Flavio Cobolli has reaped the rewards of that philosophy this year on the ATP Tour. The 22-year-old Italian has enjoyed a breakout 2024, racking up 31 of his 37 career tour-level wins and rising to the brink of the Top 30 in the PIF ATP Rankings. For someone who had won just six tour-level matches entering the season, that is quite some progress.

“Since I was young, I told myself, ‘You are good at tennis. You can do well in this sport. Stay calm, take your time and be patient, because the results will come’,” Cobolli told ATPTour.com. “This year, the results came, so I’m happy.” 

Cobolli enjoyed an extra reward for his breakout season on the ATP Tour last week, when he joined Team Europe as an alternate for its successful Laver Cup campaign in Berlin. Just eight months after he entered the Top 100 of the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time, Cobolli spent a week in Berlin rubbing shoulders and practising with the likes of Bjorn Borg, Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev and Daniil Medvedev.

“I learned a lot from the guys. They are amazing,” Cobolli said in Berlin. “I didn’t know anyone here [except Alcaraz], but since the first day I came here they treated me well. They helped me a lot. They gave me some tips for the future, for the rest of the season. They are really nice and I enjoyed this week.

“I knew Carlos well. We are the same age, and we know each other really well. We have a nice relationship. I prefer to talk about other things than tennis with him, but I asked [Grigor] Dimitrov a lot of things, and Zverev. Guys that have a little bit more experience. Of course, Carlos is already a legend of our sport, but we prefer to talk about football or other things for now!”

After impressing but falling just short of a semi-final spot at the 2023 Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF last November, Cobolli spent time training with Alcaraz in the offseason. He credits that training stint as the key to his impressive rise this year.

“I did a lot of work in pre-season,” he said. “We worked a lot to improve on my game and my [mentality]. We went to the Ferrero Academy in Villena with Carlos. We did a lot of work, had fun together, and I think beginning the season like this helped me a lot for the results. I learned a lot from his team, and I had good results after that preseason.”

<img alt=”Thomas Enqvist, Grigor Dimitrov, Carlos Alcaraz and Flavio Cobolli of Team Europe at the Laver Cup.” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/09/23/20/51/cobolli-alcaraz-dimitrov-laver-cup-2024.jpg” />
^{Photo Credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images.}
Cobolli’s first event of the year was the Australian Open, where he needed to earn entry in the main draw through qualifying. He successfully did so and advanced to the third round in Melbourne, which proved a pivotal and a crucial confidence-booster.

“I was one out [of the main draw] before the tournament, so I was really [disappointed],” he recalled. “But I qualified and then I won against [Nicolas] Jarry in five sets, so that match meant a lot to me. I also beat Felix [Auger-Aliassime] in February in Acapulco. It was a really good time for my career.”

Besides Alcaraz, Cobolli’s full-time presence on the ATP Tour has led to him crossing paths with another former World No. 1 and Grand Slam champion. In April in Barcelona, he was drawn to face Rafael Nadal in the Spaniard’s first competitive match for more than three months.

Taking on Nadal in front of an adoring home crowd was always going to be a tough assignment, and the 22-time major champion prevailed 6-2, 6-3. Yet Cobolli stayed true to his philosophy of staying patient in the face of tough outcomes, and he believes he took plenty away from the experience.

“Playing with Rafa is another level,” Cobolli said. “I watched him since I was young on TV and when the draw came out, I said, ‘I don’t know if I want to play with him, because I don’t know if I deserve it. I don’t know if I’m ready’. Of course I was a little bit nervous at the beginning, throughout the whole match even.

“It was a good experience. I enjoyed every point I did with him, and of course I learned also from that match. Things that helped me for the weeks that came after.”

Cobolli, who reached his maiden tour-level final in Washington last month, will next compete at another hard-court ATP 500, the China Open in Beijing. As he nears the end of his first full season on Tour, is there one key lesson he has learned from spending more time with the world’s best players?

“I think not just the Top 5 players in the world, but also the Top 50, they are really professional, and they never miss a thing,” he said. “They spend a lot of time recovering their bodies and healing well. All the training sessions they do are 100 per cent. At the beginning of the year, it wasn’t like this for me. I did 70 or 80 per cent, I ate McDonald’s. Now it has changed after I watched them. I changed it.”

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

Source link

Nadal, Alcaraz & Sinner among players announced for Davis Cup Final 8

Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are among the players who were announced by their countries for the Davis Cup Final 8 in Malaga, to be played in November.

Nadal, who held No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings for 209 weeks in his career, has not competed since the Paris Olympics. His doubles partner there, Alcaraz, won two of the four majors — Roland Garros and Wimbledon — this year. They will try to secure glory for Spain.

The man who triumphed at the other two majors, the Australian Open and US Open, Sinner will lead the Italian contingent, which will also include Lorenzo Musetti, Flavio Cobolli, Andrea Vavassori and Simone Bolelli.

Another intriguing team is the United States, which will feature Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Ben Shelton, Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek.

In the Final 8, Italy will face Argentina, the United States will play Australia, Germany will take on Canada and the Netherlands will battle Spain.

The quarter-finals will take place from 19-21 November, with the semi-finals on 22-23 November and the final on 24 November.

The rosters are as follows:

Italy
Jannik Sinner
Lorenzo Musetti
Flavio Cobolli
Andrea Vavassori
Simone Bolelli
Captain: Filippo Volandri

Argentina
Sebastian Baez
Francisco Cerundulo
Tomas Martin Etcheverry
Maximo Gonzalez
Andres Molteni
Captain: Guillermo Coria

United States
Taylor Fritz
Tommy Paul
Ben Shelton
Rajeev Ram
Austin Krajicek
Captain: Bob Bryan

Australia
Alexei Popyrin
Jordan Thompson
Thanasi Kokkinakis
Max Purcell
Matthew Ebden
Captain: Lleyton Hewitt

Germany
Jan-Lennard Struff
Yannick Hanfmann
Kevin Krawietz
Tim Puetz
Captain: Michael Kohlmann

Canada
Felix Auger-Aliassime
Denis Shapovalov
Gabriel Diallo
Alexis Galarneau
Vasek Pospisil
Captain: Frank Dancevic

Netherlands
Tallon Griekspoor
Botic van de Zandschulp
Jesper de Jong
Wesley Koolhof
Captain: Paul Haarhuis

Spain
Carlos Alcaraz
Roberto Bautista Agut
Rafael Nadal
Pablo Carreno Busta
Marcel Granollers
Captain: David Ferrer

Source link

Nadal included in Spain squad for Davis Cup finals

Former world number one Rafael Nadal is included in Spain’s squad for the Davis Cup Final Eight in November.

Source link

China's Zhang reaches first ATP Tour final, faces Cilic in Hangzhou

Zhang Zhizhen advanced to his first ATP Tour final on Monday at the Hangzhou Open, where he defeated countryman Buyunchaokete 7-6(3), 6-4 to become just the third Chinese man in history to reach a tour-level championship match.

Competing against wild card Buyunchaokete in the first all-Chinese ATP Tour semi-final, the sixth seed Zhang raised his level on serve at the crucial moments. The 27-year-old saved all four break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats, and fired 10 aces to earn the biggest win of his season after one hour and 40 minutes.

“It was a great match,” Zhang said. “His performance was really good. In two sets, it was one break. It was a bit lucky but I am happy with the result today.”

Zhang joins 2023 Dallas champion Wu Yibing and this week’s Chengdu finalist Shang Juncheng as the third Chinese ATP Tour finalist.

“We keep going. We try to play our best and try our best. Also for Shang, to try his best and we will see,” Zhang said.

Zhang, who had lost his two previous tour-level semi-finals in Hamburg and Halle, has dropped just one set en route to the title match in Hangzhou. Up to No. 41 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, the Chinese star will meet Marin Cilic in the final.

Earlier, Cilic reached his first ATP Tour final in two years, moving past American Brandon Nakashima 6-4, 7-6(6).

The Croatian wild card, who arrived in Hangzhou at No. 777 in the PIF ATP Rankings, saved two set points in the second set tie-break to become the second lowest-ranked finalist in ATP Tour history.

“I needed to be focused every point. I needed to find a way to find my game and battle against my opponent,” Cilic said after his one-hour, 46-minute win. “It was physical. I was 4/6 behind in the tie-break. I played a great point [at 5/6] and came back. Great spirit, great fight and great tennis.”

Marin BACK on the main stage 🏟

It’s a first ATP final since 2022 for @MarinCilic as he defeats Nakashima 6-4 7-6(6)!@HangzhouOpen | #HangzhouOpen pic.twitter.com/TJ2EUI6AU0

— ATP Tour (@atptour) September 23, 2024

Cilic has reached at least one tour-level title match in 14 different seasons since 2008 and will aim to win his first ATP Tour trophy since October 2021 (St. Petersburg) when he faces Zhang.

“It is such a great pleasure to come here. I arrived quite early and have enjoyed the city, the atmosphere,” Cilic said. “It has been an incredible week so far.”

The 35-year-old Cilic is competing in his first ATP Tour event since Buenos Aires in February, after which he was sidelined with a knee injury for several months. The former World No. 3 is aiming to clinch his 21st title and 16th on hard courts.

Nakashima was playing at a career-high No. 39 in the PIF ATP Rankings following his run to the fourth round at the US Open. The former Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF champion was trying to reach his first tour-level final of the season.

Source link

#NextGenATP Shang surges to Chengdu final, will play Musetti

Shang Juncheng continued to show his home fans why he is a rising star for Chinese tennis on Monday at the Chengdu Open.

The #NextGenATP star eased past Yannick Hanfmann 6-4, 6-4 at the ATP 250 in his homeland to reach his maiden ATP Tour championship match. Shang used his lefty forehand to pull his opponent around the court throughout their maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head clash, and he broke Hanfmann’s serve once in each set en route to an 89-minute victory.

“A lot of emotions tonight,” said the 19-year-old Shang. “I played some really good tennis to get some breaks on his serve and overall I just played solid tennis. I was very calm in my head and enjoyed the crowd.”

Just a teen making history 🇨🇳✨

Shang becomes the 2nd ever Chinese ATP Tour finalist after getting past Hanfmann in impressive fashion 6-4 6-4!@ChengduOpen | #ChengduOpen pic.twitter.com/WAvJENVrPS

— ATP Tour (@atptour) September 23, 2024

Shang was just the second Chinese man to reach a tour-level final, after 2023 Dallas champion Wu Yibing. Zhang Zhizhen shortly thereafter became the third on that list after defeating another Chinese player, Buyunchaokete, in the semi-finals at the Hangzhou Open later on Monday.

“We’re doing a lot better on the men’s side,” said Shang, when asked about being part of the current wave of Chinese ATP Tour stars. “The women’s side, they’ve been so good in the past. I’m just glad we can make some breakthroughs… I just focus on myself to become a better player, because I know it’s a long way to go if you want to become one of the best.”

Having lost his first two ATP Tour semi-finals in Hong Kong (l. to Rublev) and Atlanta (l. to Thompson) earlier this year, Shang was proactive in his bid to avoid another last-four disappointment. He struck the ball with intent throughout the match and showed few nerves in closing out a victory in which he did not face a break point, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

Shang has bolstered his position in third in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah on the back of his dream run on home soil. The 19-year-old is now just 68 points behind second-placed Alex Michelsen as he chases a debut appearance at the season-ending Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF. He will rise above Michelsen into second if he lifts the trophy in Chengdu.

Awaiting Shang in the championship match will be top seed Lorenzo Musetti, who is bidding to take the final step into the winner’s circle for the third time in 2024.

Musetti downed qualifier Alibek Kachmazov 6-4, 6-2 to reach the championship match in Chengdu. The Italian, who has also reached tour-level finals at Queen’s Club and in Umag this year, held firm in the face of some clean baseline hitting from his opponent.

Despite the one-sided nature of the scoreline, Musetti needed one hour and 42 minutes to end the fairytale run of Kachmazov, who had not dropped a set all week in Chengdu (including qualifying) prior to the match. The Italian saved all three break points he faced, according to Infosys ATP Stats, en route to his personal-best 37th tour-level win of the year.

“He was solid, He was really impressive from the beginning, and it was not easy to break him or to hold serve,” said Musetti in his on-court interview. “I think it was one of my best performances so far on serve and I’m really happy about it. I’m really happy to be in the final.”

Reaching his fifth ATP Tour final this week in Chengdu has also boosted Musetti’s chances of forging a late run to a Nitto ATP Finals debut in 2024. The 22-year-old remains 15th in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin but is now just 855 points behind eighth-placed Alex de Minaur.

Despite semi-final defeat, the 22-year-old Kachmazov has risen 73 spots to No. 179 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings and is set to rise to a career-high in the PIF ATP Rankings on Wednesday off the back of his run in Chengdu. He defeated Top 100 opponents Aleksandar Kovacevic, Taro Daniel and Nicolas Jarry in the main draw.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

Source link