The heartbreaking reason behind Shang Juncheng’s double defeat by Medvedev, as “the reborn” Yuan Yue refuses to exit in the first round of the main draw.

Although everyone knew Shang Juncheng faced slim chances against Medvedev in the first round in Dubai, no one expected the issues revealed by his loss to be so painful!

Since they had just played each other in Doha, where Shang Juncheng was handed a first-round exit by the Russian star, expectations for him in Dubai were low. Hoping for a complete transformation and swift revenge within just a week was unrealistic; the main goal was simply for him to perform normally and leave no regrets, nothing more.

The final result showed that Shang Juncheng could not overcome Medvedev, suffering consecutive first-round defeats by the Russian star in two straight weeks after Doha.

If in Doha Shang Juncheng was swept 4-6, 2-6 and could at least compete with Medvedev, his performance in Dubai showed a clear decline compared to Doha, leaving people puzzled whether he was still haunted by the previous sweep or felt intimidated facing the Russian star, or if there were other issues.

After the match, discussions about Shang Juncheng’s challenge against Medvedev described it as “like a primary school student playing against a university student.” It’s understandable that he couldn’t break through Medvedev’s defense, as defense is one of Medvedev’s strengths, but failing to protect his own defense was simply baffling.

Moreover, some pointed out another fatal flaw revealed in this match: Shang Juncheng struggles with long rallies! Whenever the point extends into prolonged exchanges, his stamina seems to immediately falter, making him extremely passive. Netizens described it as reaching a state of “brain oxygen deprivation.”

This issue puzzles many because Shang Juncheng’s stamina had greatly improved before, so theoretically this problem should not have reappeared. Why does it suddenly feel like he has regressed overnight, as if back to square one, leaving everyone deeply confused?

Facing Medvedev exposed many problems in Shang Juncheng’s game, each of which is painfully clear upon closer examination, naturally raising concerns about how his tennis career will progress from here.

Many believe that to establish oneself on the tour, a player must have standout skills—either strong offense and defense or excellence in one area. Without these, it’s hard to compete with top players. Without competing well against elite opponents, winning titles or even advancing to later rounds becomes very unlikely.

Of course, some say Shang Juncheng is still very young and was probably overwhelmed by Medvedev, which explains the powerless impression. They believe that given some time, the energetic Shang Juncheng will return soon, and his performance in the upcoming North American hard court swing is worth looking forward to. “The young Chinese player still deserves support.”

Yuan Yue is another unique presence among Chinese players this week!

After falling in the final qualifying round in Austin, many thought Yuan Yue’s journey there was over. Unexpectedly, she got lucky when Pegula withdrew, allowing her to enter the main draw as a lucky loser. Thus, her first-round match against Sramkova became a major focus for fans and netizens alike.

Before the match, some humorously said that having barely escaped elimination in qualifying to become a lucky loser, if Yuan Yue lost in the first round again, she would miss this golden chance to redeem herself in Austin. “She must cherish this opportunity.”

In this match, Yuan Yue truly shocked everyone.

After being broken first in the opening set, she quickly lost it 4-6 to Sramkova, putting her in a do-or-die situation for the rest of the match.

Trailing 3-5 in the second set, almost everyone thought Yuan Yue was about to exit and waste this second chance gifted by fate. Unexpectedly, being pushed to the brink awakened her instantly, and she won four consecutive games to take the set 7-5.

In the deciding set, Yuan Yue showed the fierce spirit of the dominating player she was in the first qualifying round. After Sramkova took the first game, she was outplayed for the rest of the set, with Yuan Yue closing it out 6-1 to complete the comeback and refuse a first-round exit.

Seeing Yuan Yue regain her fighting spirit and form after “rebirth,” her supporters were thrilled, confidently stating that if she maintains this level, her chances of reaching the semifinals are very high! In the second round, Yuan Yue will face Hungarian player Galfi, who defeated Canadian Andreescu 2-1.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Moon River’s Starry Sky)