Shang Juncheng: Losing in Beijing was really disappointing, and the second-round match against Khachanov will be a tough battle.

On October 2nd Beijing time, Chinese player Shang Juncheng defeated Kovacevic 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in the opening round of the 2025 Shanghai Rolex Masters, marking a successful beginning for the Chinese team in this event.

Shang Juncheng

In a post-match interview, Shang Juncheng said he was very upset about exiting in the first round at the China Open, but he adjusted his mindset in time and was rewarded in Shanghai: “Overall, I feel the training and preparation over the past few weeks have been very positive, and my mentality is good. Losing in Beijing was really tough; I hadn’t won a match there for three consecutive years, and my doubles matches were also close. So coming to Shanghai, I lacked some confidence, but my team and I worked very hard and prepared seriously for this match. Hard work does pay off. Today my serving was excellent, and my baseline play, forehand, backhand, and movement were all smooth. Overall, there were no major weaknesses.”

Looking ahead to the second-round clash with current world No. 10 Khachanov, Shang Juncheng said: “He’s a nearly 2-meter tall, very well-rounded player with strong mobility. He is now a very consistent top-ten player. We have trained together and I have experienced his style of play, so maybe I can find some weaknesses to exploit, like the fact that he’s not as agile as I am. Of course, his power is huge, so he will definitely try to use his strengths against my weaknesses. The most important thing is to maintain the right attitude, enjoy the match, and believe that I can play very well.”

For this Shanghai tournament, Shang Juncheng’s father, Shang Yi, was unusually unable to accompany him, but some family members came to watch. He said: “He has always been with me since I was young. Unfortunately, my dad was busy this time and couldn’t come. Of course, I have my coach and agent, and today my grandmother came along with many relatives. Seeing my grandmother at the venue made me very happy; she is a very optimistic elderly lady. After I was broken in the second set, I saw her smiling throughout. She really enjoys watching me play. Even when I’m losing, she hopes to see me give 100% effort. I hope she had a great time today.”

Talking about his experience after losing at the China Open, Shang Juncheng revealed more details: “I was very disappointed at the time, and then Norrie asked if I wanted to train. I said unfortunately I had doubles, but he also lost that day. If I had won that match, I would have had another match the next day, but since I lost, why not train? So I think their spirit is something I can really learn from. Because after failure, you have to keep doing things you don’t like and that might upset you to keep improving. So the next day I went to the gym to work on fitness and fought hard on the doubles court. These training sessions helped me a lot and gave me confidence coming here.”

Shang Juncheng and Zhang Zhizhen will team up for doubles in two consecutive tournaments, the China Open and the Shanghai Rolex Masters. Their doubles first-round match is scheduled for tomorrow. He expressed great anticipation for the match: “Doubles is actually a way for us to adjust our mindset and rhythm. The last tournament in Beijing was very important for me, and this one in Shanghai, his hometown, is very important for him. So I believe we will both fight hard tomorrow and aim to play our best tennis. I also really enjoy the atmosphere with the fans. At the China Open, the stands were never so full before; people were sitting on the stairs watching us, and many even stood. So I think it’s a great opportunity to interact with the fans and show our best level. I’m sure he has prepared well, and we will work hard together.”

(Text and editing by Wang Fei, photos provided by the tournament)