US Open Junior singles champ and tournament wild card Yibing Wu put up a strong fight tonight in his first ever ATP World Tour match against Thiago Monteiro, winning the first set in some style, but could not sustain his momentum as he fell to a 6-1, 6-7(6), 2-6 defeat in just under two hours.
The 17-year-old, dubbed ‘the next Chinese sensation’, showcased some powerful returns, baseline strokes and net play during a scintillating first set, but his 23-year-old Brazilian opponent eventually adjusted to break Wu in the eleventh and thirteenth games of the second set tie-breaker before sealing his second round spot with a commanding third set performance.
“I would rate my performance about seven out of ten. I ran out of steam half way and must learn to manage my intensity during the match,” said Wu, who is the youngest player in the main draw.
The first match of the day featured a showdown between two #NextGenATP players - American Jared Donaldson (No.58) and Greek qualifier Stefanos Tsitsipas (career high of No.117).
In a thrilling three set encounter lasting two hours and 25 minutes, the 20-year-old Donaldson came back from a set down to defeat his 19-year-old opponent 6-7(2), 7-5, 7-5 and make it eight consecutive ATP World Tour tournaments in which he has progressed into the second round or further, including two Grand Slams.
“The entire match was extremely close and Stefano played a really tremendous match. I think I played a really good final game to break for the match and overall, I played well enough to win today. I was really excited to come back not only to this tournament but also Asia in general, because last year I didn’t win a match in Asia! So now, to win my first match here, I think it’s really important and I’m proud I was able to do it with a really hard fought win,” said Donaldson.
Singles fifth seed and world No.42 Yuichi Sugita of Japan, making his debut here in Chengdu, moved into the second round after his opponent, Croatian qualifier Mate Pavic, pulled out of the match with a muscular injury at the start of the second set (Sugita won the first set 6-1).
“I’m sorry my opponent had to pull out but I’m happy to be in the second round. I’m feeling physically good. I played a lot of matches in the Davis Cup before coming here so it’s good to have an easy first round,” said the 29-year-old Sugita, who captured his maiden ATP Tour title in his first final appearance at Antalya earlier this year.
In the only other singles first round match contested today, #NextGenATP qualifier American Taylor Fritz cruised past Chinese wild card Di Wu 7-5, 6-1 in 61 minutes.
“I’m feeling pretty good. It was a tough first set but I thought I played well and handled the situation. The courts here play really fast and it’s good for my serve. I’d really like to make it to Milan (for the #NextGenATP finals) so I’ll need a big run in one of these tournaments, maybe win one of these tournaments,” said the 19-year-old world No.94.
In the only first round doubles match played today, Treat Huey of the Philippines and Fabrice Martin of France defeated Russian pairing Karen Khachanov (the singles defending champion and third seed) and Andrey Rublev (fourth seed in the singles) 6-1, 7-6(4) in 62 minutes.
Huey and Martin have a combined doubles titles haul of eleven (Huey has eight) and paired up for the first time in last week’s Moselle Open, where they made the quarterfinals.
SIXTH AND SEVENTH SINGLES SEEDS COMMENCE CAMPAIGNS TOMORROW
The Chengdu Open 2017 moves into the thick of the main draw action tomorrow, with seven first round singles matches and two doubles matches being contested.
Two seeded players will see action, with sixth seed Kyle Edmund of Great Britain opening his campaign against Aussie Bernard Tomic while Serbian seventh seed Viktor Troicki faces a potentially tricky first round tie with in-form Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili.
The world No. 46 Edmund has made two semifinals since July (Atlanta and Winston-Salem), helping him get close to his career high of No.40 achieved in October last year, but the 22-year-old has yet to make his first final on Tour.
Twenty-four-year-old former world No.17 Tomic suffered a six match losing streak from January 20 to April 25 and has endured a year filled with illnesses, injuries and controversy, but the Aussie will hope for a change of fortune as he makes his debut in Chengdu tomorrow.
The 31-year-old former world No. 12 Troicki, who has three career titles from nine finals appearances, has yet to make a final this year, while his 25-year-old Georgian opponent comes in fresh off a semifinal appearance in St. Petersburg (his second SF of the year) and has already beaten Troicki in their only previous meeting on the clay courts of Roland Garros in June.
Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis is also set to take to court tomorrow, facing off for the fifth time on Tour against Canadian Vasek Pospisil. Former world No.25 Pospisil has only beaten the former world No.8 Baghdatis once in their last four encounters, although the Canadian is currently ranked 41 spots higher at No.81.
In what should be a closely fought encounter, Croatian #NextGenATP contender Borna Coric and Argentinian Guido Pella are set to face each other for the first time on Tour in tomorrow’s final match on Stadium Court. The 20-year-old Coric picked up his maiden Tour title at Marrakech in April, while 27-year-old Pella made his second career final on the clay courts of Munich in May. Coric is currently ranked 17 spots higher at No.55.
In doubles matches tomorrow, the third and fourth seeds will be in action against Chinese wild card pairings.
Third seeded Mexican-Serbian combo Santiago Gonzalez and Nenad Zemonjic, pairing for the first time on Tour, will meet Fajing Sun and Rigele Te while fourth seeds Dominic Inglot of Great Britain and Canadian Daniel Nestor, who picked up their first title as a pair on the grass courts of Nottingham last year, face off against Di Wu and Yibing Wu.
There will be free admission to Court 1 and 2 matches. Tickets for the Chengdu Open main draw Stadium Court matches through to the finals will range in price from RMB 30 to RMB 400 and are available through www.damai.cn and www.piao.com.cn.
The tournament is owned by IMG and is organized by the Chinese Tennis Association and Chengdu Municipal Government, is co-organized by Chengdu Sports Bureau, Shuangliu District Government and Chengdu Culture Tourism Group and is promoted by Sichuan Investment International Tennis Centre Development Co., Ltd., CCTV IMG (Beijing) Sports Management Co. Ltd. and IMG Sports Development (Shanghai) Limited.
The Chengdu Open is also very proud to have the distinguished support from ATP World Tour’s Premier Partner Emirates, the official player hotel St. Regis, Chengdu which fast became a favourite of the players, Srixon tennis balls, the Sichuan Tennis International Hotel which is conveniently located adjacent to the courts and providing efficient services to the tournament, the official sponsor Chengdu Better City, the official car Unicorn, the official apparel Erke, the official gym equipment Life Fitness, the official Chinese tea Sichuan Mengding Tea Co. Ltd., the official stringer Yonex and the official water Ice Age. The Official media partners are Iqiyi Sports, West China Metropolis, Chengdu Radio and TV Station, Chengdu Daily, CTA APP, Shenzhen Hundred-Meter Life Shares Co., Ltd., and Tennis World.
The official tournament website www.ChengduOpenTennis.com has additional information about the tournament.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Contact Ms. Robecta Yeung, ph: +852-28940204 or +86-13760373443 or by email Robecta.Yeung@img.com.
About the 2017 Chengdu Open
Please visit: www.ChengduOpenTennis.com
About Chinese Tennis Association
Please visit: www.tennis.org.cn
About Chengdu City
Please visit: www.chengdu.gov.cn
About Chengdu Sports Bureau
Please visit: www.cdsport.gov.cn
About Shuangliu District
Please visit: www.shuangliu.gov.cn
About Chengdu Culture Tourism Group
Please visit: www.cdctg.com
About Sichuan Investment International Tennis Centre Development Co., Ltd.
Please visit: www.sciitc.com
About CCTV-IMG Sports Management Company
Please visit: www.cctv-img.com
About IMG
Please visit: www.img.com
About the ATP World Tour
Please visit: www.atpworldtour.com
