Lu Returns To Home Soil In Kaohsiung
Lu Returns To Home Soil In Kaohsiung
Taiwanese star looks for third ATP Challenger Tour title of 2016
After an outstanding run of form earlier this year on the ATP Challenger Tour, Yen-Hsun Lu is looking to pick up where he left off as he returns to home soil.
The 33 year old is the second seed at this week‘s $125,000 Challenger in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Lu will play Ze Zhang of China in his opening match, which he admitted might bring up some uncomfortable emotions.
“I am close to most of the players from Chinese Taipei and mainland China. It’s quite often that we play against each other in Challenger events,” said Lu. “It‘s never easy to play with friends, because you can’t express all your feelings on court like you would against others and we’re all too familiar with each other.”
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Lu was sidelined for six months due to an ongoing elbow problem that he eventually underwent surgery for this January in Australia. He returned to the ATP Challenger Tour in May at the $100,000 event in Seoul, Korea, and immediately began producing big results.
The veteran posted a 20-3 record in five Challenger events, winning on the English grass courts of Ilkley and Surbiton, and finishing runner-up at the grass-court Challenger in Manchester. Lu also posted a runner-up showing in Seoul.
“I think the results tell the whole story,” said Lu. “I am very happy with my performance in the past few months. It shows that I can still compete with Top 50 and even Top 30 players. Most importantly, I don‘t feel any pain in my hand now. I am completely healthy and can give everything during matches and training.”
He‘s hoping to draw from recent success in Asia and inspire himself for another big week in Kaohsiung. Lu excelled in China at the end of last year, winning the $125,000 ATP Challenger Tour in Ningbo and posting a quarter-final showing at the China Open.
As one of the most successful players from Asia, Lu often finds himself being asked for advice by many of the rising stars on the ATP Challenger Tour. Having once been in their position himself, it‘s a role that he takes pride in.
“I would say it‘s important to take these Challenger events seriously. You need to give all of yourself to try and score a win because this is the only way to improve,” said Lu. “If you can remain consistent, you‘ll have a chance to show your best tennis on the ATP World Tour.”