Shang Juncheng Claims His First ATP Title at 2024 Chengdu Open
The Chinese player battled Lorenzo Musetti of Italy in the final.
Shang Juncheng of China, 19, defeated Lorenzo Musetti of Italy, 22, to win the Men’s Singles title at the 2024 Chengdu Open in Chengdu, China (an ATP 250 event). The score in the final was 7-6 (7-4 tiebreaker) and 6-1 in favor of Shang.
This was the first match Musetti and Shang have ever played against each other on the ATP Tour. Today’s victory was the first title Shang has won on the 2024 ATP Tour and the first title of his career in single’s competition. That means his maiden title came from a hard court event at the 250-level. Notably, he becomes the eleventh player to win his first ATP title during the 2024 season so far - and the first Chinese player to accomplish the feat.
Moreover, Shang becomes the first player representing China to win the title in Chengdu since the event joined the tour in 2016. He is only the second Chinese player to win an ATP title during the Open Era - following Wu Yibing at the 2023 Dallas Open. And finally, he becomes the first player born in 2005 to win a title on the ATP Tour.
Heading into this tournament, Musetti was ranked as the Number 19 tennis player on the 2024 ATP Tour, while Shang carried the Number 67 designation. By winning in Chengdu, Shang has received 250 points in the overall rankings. Meanwhile, Musetti has picked up 165 points. By reaching the final, Shang has achieved a new career best ranking - falling just short of his Top 50 debut.
Alexander Zverev of Germany (No. 2) was the tournament’s reigning champion. This year though, he decided to compete at the Laver Cup in Berlin instead. Meanwhile, Musetti was the event’s top seed while Shang entered the main draw as an unseeded player. Musetti received a bye into the second round of the competition.
Shang arrived in the final after winning against wildcard Kei Nishikori of Japan (No. 201), eighth seed Roman Safiullin of Russia (No. 56), second seed Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan (No. 26), and Yannick Hanfmann of Germany (No. 95). This was also the first ATP final he has contested.
In the other half of the main draw, Musetti defeated Christopher O’Connell of Australia (No. 75), fifth seed Adrian Mannarino of France (No. 46), and qualifier Alibek Kachmazov of Russia (No. 252). This was the third ATP final he has reached in 2024 and the fifth in his single’s career.
The revised rankings for the 2024 ATP Tour will be officially released on Monday, September 30. The tour will then play two tournaments from September 26-October 2: the China Open in Beijing, China (an ATP 500 event) and the Japan Open in Tokyo, Japan (an ATP 500 event). Both competitions will be played on hard courts.
Jannik Sinner of Italy (No. 1) is the reigning champion at the China Open. He is looking to defend the title as the event’s top seed this year. He will face off against Nicolás Jarry of Chile (No. 28) in the first round. Meanwhile, Musetti and Shang have also entered the main draw - with Musetti as the sixth seed and Shang receiving a special exempt entry. In the first round, Musetti will play against a qualifier while Shang will battle wildcard Bu Yunchaokete of China (No. 96).
Elsewhere, Ben Shelton of the United States (No. 17) is the reigning champion at the Japan Open. He too is attempting a title defense this year as the event’s eighth seed. He will compete against Reilly Opelka of the United States (No. 306) in the first round.