Shang second Chinese player to win an ATP title

Teenager Shang Juncheng beat Italy’s Olympic bronze medallist Lorenzo Musetti 7-6(4) 6-1 in the Chengdu Open final on Tuesday to become the second Chinese player to win an ATP title.It marks a first ATP Tour title for Shang, who is China’s number two and ranked 55 in the world.The 19-year-old former juniors number one is also the youngest ATP winner this season."It’s really, really special for me,” said Shang. "Especially to do it at home. It’s been tough matches this week. I’ve played really good tennis, kept calm, and overall I’m just very happy to be here in Chengdu."I think the first set was great,” said Shang. "Amazing tennis from both of us. I was kind of struggling physically, to be honest. Really long rallies, and he played some good points. I was serving for the set and got a little bit tight, and he took the chance."In the tie-break, I think I just kept my cool and was really calm, listening to my coach. Trying to fix the serve, fix the forehand a little bit."I’m glad it worked out and the second set was a little bit smoother.”Li Na remains China’s most successful singles player with Grand Slam wins at the French Open in 2011 and the Australian Open in 2014, while there are several women hoping to emulate her including Paris Olympics gold medallist Zheng Qinwen.But success on the men’s side has largely eluded the nation, and Wu Yibing became the first Chinese player to capture an ATP trophy when he won the Dallas Open last year.Shang has also strengthened his push to qualify for the Next Gen ATP Finals for the first time. The competition, hosted in Saudi Arabia in November-December, will feature the world’s top 20-and-under singles players from the ATP Tour season.In the Hangzhou Open, Croat wild card Marin Cilic became the lowest-ranked champion in ATP Tour history on Tuesday with success in his first tour level event since February.Cilic, who turns 36 on Saturday, won his first title since 2021 with a 7-6(5) 7-6(5) win over China’s number one and sixth seed Zhang Zhizhen, who was playing his first tour level final.The triumph for Cilic, who has been sidelined with a knee injury, lifted the former world number three from 777th at the start of the tournament to 212 in the ATP rankings.It was the 21st title of Cilic’s career, with the Hangzhou Open having replaced the Zhuhai Championships on the calendar.