After a tough three-set battle, Zhou Yi unfortunately lost, but reaching the quarterfinals marked a new career milestone for him.

Regarding Chinese male tennis player Zhou Yi, he is well-known among many tennis enthusiasts. In the 2023 season, at the Australian Open junior tournament in January, he battled through three sets to overcome the top-seeded Swiss player Kilian Feldbausch, reaching the semifinals and equaling the best performance by a Chinese male player at the Australian Open juniors, set by Wu Yibing.

That August, Zhou Yi won two consecutive matches at the Zhuhai Challenger, reaching his first-ever Challenger quarterfinal. However, since this tournament was a lower-tier 50-level event, the significance of this quarterfinal run was somewhat limited. Nevertheless, improving his world ranking by over 600 places within a year can still be considered a remarkable achievement.

In the 2024 season, although Zhou Yi won two titles at the Hope tournaments in Tianjin and helped China defeat Slovenia in the Davis Cup, his Challenger results that year were rather underwhelming, with only one victory in Challenger events. Still, thanks to wins at the ATP250 Chengdu Open and the Shanghai Masters, Zhou Yi managed to boost his world ranking by over 500 places, becoming the second Chinese male player born after 2005 to achieve such a rise.

In the 2025 season, after a period of uncertainty, Zhou Yi secured his first main-draw victory at an overseas Challenger event in early June by defeating American player T. Hilderbrand in the first round of the Tyler Challenger. From there, he gained momentum with consecutive wins, eventually reaching his first Challenger final. Prior to this, Zhou Yi had never advanced beyond the semifinals of a Challenger. Unfortunately, the Tyler Challenger was still only a 75-level tournament.

In early July, perhaps unwilling to be labeled a flash in the pan, Zhou Yi defeated Taiwan’s Wu Tung-lin, American Andres Martin, and Ecuador’s Andrade at the Winnipeg Challenger, reaching the semifinals of a Challenger for the second time in his career. It’s important to note that this event was also a 75-level tournament. That same month, Zhou Yi made the quarterfinals at the Bloomfield Hills Challenger, which is a higher-level 100-tier event.

Recently, at the Shanghai Challenger, Zhou Yi consecutively defeated Japanese player Yoshihito Nishioka, who once reached an ATP 500 final, and Kentaro Tokuda to reach the quarterfinals. Although he was reversed in the quarterfinals by Taiwan’s Hsu Yu-hsiou after winning the first set, he still became the best performing Chinese male player in that Challenger, earning a wildcard for the Shanghai Masters. It’s worth mentioning that the Shanghai Challenger is a 100-level event.

This week, Zhou Yi appeared in the Jinan Challenger as a wildcard entrant, a 125-level tournament. In the first round, he faced Australian player Skurkat. In the opening set, both players held their serves tightly, with the score tied until a tiebreak. During the tiebreak, Zhou Yi noticeably raised his serve quality and dominated offensively, winning the tiebreak 7–2 to take the first set and gain an early advantage.

In the second set, the competition remained intense. When the score was close, Zhou Yi accelerated his pace, repeatedly breaking through Skurkat’s defense with powerful forehands. Thanks to his crucial bursts of energy, Zhou Yi won two straight sets, marking his first victory over this opponent since entering the ATP professional circuit.

In the second round, Zhou Yi faced Australian player Rinky Hijikata, who had previously reached the round of 16 at a Grand Slam. Zhou Yi battled through three sets to defeat him and advance to the quarterfinals. In the quarters, he faced French player Quentin Halys, who has reached a tour final and is a strong competitor.

Despite losing the first set and pushing the match to a deciding set, Zhou Yi ultimately was blanked in the final set due to the difference in skill level. Nevertheless, this remains Zhou Yi’s best result at a 125-level Challenger and can be considered a new breakthrough in his professional career. That concludes today’s tennis story; more to come tomorrow.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Yixin Jushi)