Looking ahead to the tennis tournaments in Shanghai and Wuhan, five major questions await Chinese players to solve.

Unnoticed, the Shanghai Masters will resume next week, while the WTA1000 Wuhan event is about to kick off. Several Chinese players will compete in these two tennis tournaments. With their participation, many questions are pending their answers. So, what exactly are these questions? Today, this article will take you through them.

Yesterday, Shang Juncheng won in straight sets in the second round of the Shanghai Masters against Russian player Khachanov, a former Masters champion, marking his first consecutive wins at a Masters event in his career. This was also his first victory over a Top 10 player. In the third round, Shang will face Portuguese player Borges, who once reached the round of 16 at a Grand Slam. Since Borges only reached one tour semifinal in the 2025 season, Shang has a strong chance to win and match Zhang Zhizhen’s record at the Shanghai Masters. So, can Shang achieve this? This is the first question awaiting Chinese players next week.

Recently, veteran Zhang Shuai, who performed well at the China Open, entered the Wuhan tennis tournament as a wildcard. In the first round, her opponent is American Navarro. In the 2025 season, Navarro won a tour title and also reached the quarterfinals at the China Open this week. Honestly, considering Navarro’s strength and higher world ranking compared to Zhang Shuai, defeating her seems quite unrealistic. However, nothing is absolute. So, can Zhang Shuai pull off an upset against this formidable opponent? This is the second question awaiting Chinese players next week.

Currently, “China’s Sharapova” Wang Xinyu has suffered two consecutive losses. In the first round of the WTA1000 Wuhan event, her opponent was a qualifier. Last season, Wang soared here, reaching the semifinals of her first WTA1000 tournament. Objectively speaking, winning the first round shouldn’t be too difficult for Wang. However, since she will face the new French Open champion, American Gauff, in the second round, repeating last season’s miracle seems quite challenging. So, can she pull it off? This is the third question awaiting Chinese players next week.

Although Yuan Yue lost 6-0 in the second round of the China Open to Polish player Swiatek, who has won six Grand Slam titles, this result is understandable. Next week, Yuan will appear as a wildcard at the WTA1000 Wuhan event. In the first round, her opponent is also a qualifier. So, can Yuan secure a win and claim her second victory here? This is the fourth question awaiting Chinese players next week.

Today, Wang Yafan and Wang Xiyu will compete in the final round of the WTA1000 Wuhan qualifiers, aiming to secure spots in the main draw. Will they succeed in their quest? If they break through, will these two Chinese players face Yuan Yue and Wang Xinyu in the first round of the WTA1000 Wuhan event, setting up a Chinese derby? This is the fifth question awaiting Chinese players next week. That’s the tennis story for today; more to come tomorrow.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Yixin Jushi)