#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.