Keep moving forward where glory begins, Bu Yunchaokete wins again at Shanghai Masters after two years

Many tennis enthusiasts know Bu Yunchaokete well. In 2022, he secured six Futures titles, truly becoming the "King of the Futures." That year, he boosted his world ranking by more than a thousand places.

During the 2023 season, he captured his first Challenger title at the Seoul Challenger, which also made him the first Chinese male tennis player to win an overseas 125 Challenger tournament. This achievement made Bu Yunchaokete the fastest Chinese male player to go from his first Challenger main draw win to winning a Challenger title.

However, few might know where Bu Yunchaokete earned his first tour-level victory. After reaching this new milestone in his career, how has his performance been there in recent years? Today, this article will take you to explore just that.

In early October 2023, Bu Yunchaokete appeared at the Shanghai Masters as a wildcard entrant. This was his first appearance on the tour since turning professional. In the first round, his opponent was Serbian player Kecmanovic.

That year, Serbian players seemed to be lucky opponents for Chinese players. Zhang Zhizhen's first Grand Slam win came against Serbian player Lajovic, and Wu Yibing's third Grand Slam victory was also over Lajovic. This time, Bu Yunchaokete’s opponent was another Serbian player. It seemed luck was on his side.

However, Kecmanovic took the first set in a tiebreak, gaining an early advantage. In the second set, Bu Yunchaokete launched a fierce comeback, allowing Kecmanovic to win only two games. In the third set, with Bu Yunchaokete leading, Kecmanovic retired due to physical reasons. Thus, Bu Yunchaokete earned his first tour-level win. Although he was swept by American player Korda in the second round, he was one of only two wildcard players to win a match at that year's Shanghai Masters.

Last year, after reaching the semifinals consecutively at the ATP250 Hangzhou Open and ATP500 China Open, Bu Yunchaokete was defeated early at the Shanghai Masters. He lost in the first round to American player Mickelson and could not advance further. Yesterday, Bu Yunchaokete appeared again at the Shanghai Masters. Notably, he was the only Chinese male player to enter this year’s Shanghai Masters based on his world ranking.

In the first round, Bu Yunchaokete faced Argentine player Juan Cerundolo. It was their first meeting. In the opening set, during a tight scoreline, Bu Yunchaokete broke his opponent’s serve consecutively and took the lead. He then closed the set 6–3 without giving Cerundolo any chance.

In the second set, both players held their service games, keeping the score close until it reached a tiebreak. In the tiebreak, despite leading, Bu Yunchaokete failed to maintain his advantage, allowing Cerundolo to catch up and eventually take the set. Cerundolo leveled the match, sending it to a deciding set.

In the final set, with the score tight, Bu Yunchaokete won three consecutive games by holding and breaking serve, earning match point. Although Cerundolo saved one match point, Bu Yunchaokete sealed the victory on his serve. This marked Bu Yunchaokete’s first win at the Shanghai Masters in two years. That’s today’s tennis story; more to come tomorrow.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Yixin Jushi)