The 17-year-old Chinese became the first tennis player born in 2005 to win a tournament in this category under the watchful eye of the former world number one.
Chinese tennis player Juncheng Shang (344th in the ATP rankings) won his first Challenger title in Lexington, after defeating Ecuadorian Emilio Gómez (121st) by partials of 6-4 and 6-4.
Under the eyes of Marcelo Rios who traveled more than 1,400 kilometers to observe his pupil, the 17-year-old became the first born in 2005 to win a Challenger in an intense and complex duel.
After beating the son of Andrés Gómez, champion of Roland Garros in 1990, the one trained by Chino continues to rise in a meteoric way in the world showcases of tennis and confirms the chips that make him one of the greatest promises of this sport.
Relationship with the Chinese
The Vitacura native started coaching Jerry, nickname of the young athlete, at the end of July, and they have already formed a close and loving relationship. Although he is in the process of learning, testing and negotiating to train him full time, Ríos traveled 900 miles (from Sarasota, Florida, to Lexington, Kentucky) to witness her performance in the semi-finals and finals.
As he told El Deportivo, the former world no. “I told him that if he made it to the semi-finals, I would go see him.”
“I had to make the contract with him on Monday, but I said no, because I want to go see these two challengers with him and know what it’s like to be there before I make a decision” he detailed.
The third Chinese racket, only behind Yibing Wu (177th) and Zhizhen Zhang (197th), was attentive to the advice of his new coach, who indicated that technically there is not much to improve, but there is. physically and tactically. “Technically he’s very good, but tactically he still has a long way to go. The good news is he’s a quick learner and I wouldn’t be impressed if he dude get in fast and finish 150 now and not next year,” Ríos said.
“Physically, he is also lacking, because he is very small. I still don’t see him play five sets, but what he plays, he plays very well. He needs a good pre-season. I have nothing to reproach him for and that I am super critical”
Promising future
Shang, son of the first Chinese footballer to play in Spain and world table tennis champion, is already a star in his country. The spotlight is on him to lead a new era in Chinese tennis, as his path ahead is exciting.
With a junior number one (2021) and four Futures in his possession, the youngster could easily climb the world rankings. 241° is already live However, as the Chinese say, “Your ranking is a liar, because you hit a crack and it goes up quickly .
He is 17 and at 19 he is among the 20, I am happy, but he needs a year to learn, to know how to play… I want him to learn, he added, although he comments that he would not be “impressed if the dude go ahead and complete 150 now and not next year.”
It reminds me a lot of me, it’s very similar in way of being. Never in my life had I been so impressed to see someone play. I had seen him play with Shapovalov, he caught my attention, but I didn’t really pick it up. Besides, he is 17 years old and has never had a full-time coach and has never made a pre-season. He’s 300 years old from what he’s seen. Imagine if I manage to train him or they manage to train him, the potential he has is unbelievable” held the best Chilean tennis player in history.
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Source: Latercera
I’m Todderic Kirkman, a journalist and author for athletistic. I specialize in covering all news related to sports, ranging from basketball to football and everything in between. With over 10 years of experience in the industry, I have become an invaluable asset to my team. My ambition is to bring the most up-to-date information on sports topics around the world.
