ATP Acapulco: Wu Yibing stages a major comeback to win, advances to main draw to face Ruud

On the morning of February 23rd Beijing time, the ATP500 Acapulco qualifying final round unfolded. Chinese athlete Wu Yibing rallied from a 0-5 deficit in the second set and later overturned a 0-3 tiebreak disadvantage to defeat Australian Rinpei Tsuchikata 6-1, 7-6(3) after 1 hour and 27 minutes, clinching a place in the men's singles main draw.

Wu Yibing (Photo: Li Jianyi)

Following this match, Wu Yibing’s live ranking rose to No.142. Last week, he surpassed Bu Yunchaokete to officially become the new "China No.1." This is his first time competing in the Acapulco tournament on the tour. After advancing through two qualifying rounds to reach the main draw, his first-round opponent will be the 3rd seed and current world No.12, Norwegian star Ruud. The two have never faced each other before.

Zhang Shuai (Photo: Li Jianyi)

In the early hours today at the WTA500 Merida qualifying final round, Zhang Shuai saved a set point in the first set and defeated Italian player Trevisan 7-5, 6-1, extending her head-to-head record against Trevisan to 3-0. She advanced to the women's singles main draw and her live ranking improved to No.80. Her first-round opponent will be fellow qualifier Lepchenko, and if she progresses, she will face the 2nd seed Navarro in the second round.

Zhang Shuai did not choose to compete in doubles at Merida. Chinese players Guo Hanyu (partnering with Meladnovic), Jiang Xinyu (partnering with Bucsa), Feng Shuo (partnering with Brooks), and the duo Tang Qianhui/Xu Yifan will participate in the women's doubles event at this tournament.

Chinese player Yuan Yue unfortunately fell short in the qualifying final round of the WTA250 Austin tournament, losing 4-6, 3-6 to local player Osuigwe. Austin has been a lucky venue for Yuan Yue’s career; in 2024 she won her first tour-level singles title here, and last year she and Blinkova captured the doubles championship, marking two consecutive years of titles in Austin.

Guo Hanyu finished runner-up in the Midland WTA125 singles final, losing 4-6, 6-7(4) to 5th seed Charaeva. Although she missed out on the title, Guo gained valuable experience at her highest-level singles final to date. Her world ranking reached a personal best of No.156 this week, and she successfully secured spots in the French Open and Wimbledon qualifying draws this year.

Chinese player Tang Qianhui and her partner Santamaria won the women's doubles title in Midland after their opponents Smith/Stoyanova withdrew from the final. Stoyanova’s decision to withdraw was mainly due to a grueling 3-hour and 4-minute singles semifinal loss to Guo Hanyu.

Wang Xinyu (Photo: Visual China)

As the new week’s tournaments are about to begin, the Chinese contingent heads to fresh venues. Wang Xinyu enters the WTA250 Austin event as the 3rd seed in singles, facing qualifier Swiss player Masarova in the first round, with the match scheduled for about 9:30 AM Beijing time tomorrow. Zhang Zhizhen and Shang Juncheng will appear at this week’s ATP500 Dubai tournament. Zhang Zhizhen faces top seed Alcaraz in the first round, with the match starting no earlier than 11:00 PM Beijing time tonight. Shang Juncheng will compete in both singles and doubles; he teams up with Bublik in doubles and will face Hoang/Jeppesen in the first round, with their match around 7:30 PM tonight.

(Written and edited by Wang Fei)