The Chengdu Open witnessed an eventful opening day as several players progressed, while others faced early exits. Notably, French veteran Gael Monfils’s tournament ended prematurely due to an unfortunate injury during his match against Kazakhstan’s Alexander Shevchenko. Monfils, who had secured the first set, fell awkwardly late in the second set, forcing him to retire with the score at 6-7(3) 6-3 1-0.
“I loved every second of the match, and I really didn’t want to end it like this,” said Shevchenko, who looked up to Monfils as a childhood idol. The Frenchman, known for his engaging style on the court, has had a challenging year, and this loss further impacted his ranking, which currently sits at 52. Monfils had shown promise earlier in the season, clinching the title at the Auckland tournament, marking the 13th victory of his career.
Shevchenko, making his debut at the ATP 250 event, is set to face Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the next round. Perricard had a strong performance against Austria’s Filip Misolic, winning in straight sets without facing a break point, with a scoreline of 3-6 6-1 6-4.
Earlier in the tournament, Croatian player Dino Prizmic advanced by defeating France’s Terence Atmane 6-4 6-3. The 20-year-old is competing in Chengdu through the Next Gen Accelerator, a program aimed at giving younger players more opportunities on the ATP Tour. Prizmic’s next match will be against the top seed and last year’s runner-up, Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti, who advanced directly to the second round.
Other competitors who emerged victorious on Day 2 included Italy’s eighth seed Lorenzo Sonego and Australian qualifier Mackenzie McDonald, both of whom rallied for decisive set victories. Sonego edged past Argentina’s Juan Manuel Cerundolo with a score of 4-6 6-3 6-1, while McDonald secured his win against the Netherlands’ Boris van de Zandschulp, finishing with a score of 6-4 3-6 6-3.
Meanwhile, at the Hangzhou Open, several first-round matches are still ongoing, revealing some surprising outcomes. Czech player Dalibor Svrcina, who entered the tournament as a “lucky loser,” pulled off an upset by defeating former top-10 player Matteo Berrettini 6-3 6-3. It’s worth noting that Berrettini is returning from injury, which has affected his recent form.
Svrcina expressed his delight after the match, stating, “I wasn’t the favorite coming into this match, so I just wanted to enjoy myself and play freely.” He acknowledged the challenge of facing an accomplished player like Berrettini and celebrated this win as a significant milestone in his young career.
In other results from Day 2 in Hangzhou, Argentina’s Tomás Martín Etcheverry earned his 20th tour-level victory this season with a 6-2 6-4 win over Bosnia’s Damir Dzumhur. He is gearing up to face Australian qualifier Rinka Hijikata, who surpassed fifth seed Camilo Ugo Carabelli in his own matchup with a score of 7-6(2) 6-4.
American qualifier Nishesh Basavereddy made headlines by defeating defending champion Marin Cilic 4-6 6-4 6-3. The 20-year-old’s next challenge will pit him against second seed Daniil Medvedev of Russia. As the tournament progresses, fans can look forward to more exciting encounters as players vie for crucial points in the ATP rankings.
