Chengdu Open—China
Shang Defeats Nishikori in Chengdu; Nishioka Advances in Hangzhou
Thursday’s schedule of play in Chengdu, China was highlighted by home-country hero Juncheng Shang defeating Japanese star Kei Nishikori, 6-4, 6-4.
In an entertaining match that lasted one hour and 43 minutes, Shang struck five aces, won 79 percent of his first serve points and broke serve on three occasions.
Nishikori, who has been injured for the better part of two years, is currently ranked No. 201 in the world. The 34-year-old was ranked as high as No. 4 in the world in March of 2015.
Tying his head-to-head with Nishikori at 1-1, Shang will next face No. 8 seed Roman Safiullin for a place in the quarterfinals. Safiullin defeated Fabio Fognini 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 later in the day.
Other winners on Thursday included No. 5 seed Adrian Mannarino, Yannick Hanfmann, Federico Agustin Gomez, Alibek Kachmazov, Christopher O’Connell, Aleksandar Vukic and Yi Zhou.
Friday’s schedule will feature No. 3 seed Nicolas Jarry and No. 4 seed Pedro Martinez.
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Hangzhou Open—China
Thursday’s action at the Hangzhou Open in China saw No. 8 seed Yoshihito Nishioka progressing to the round of 16, defeating Maximilian Marterer 6-4, 6-2.
Nishioka, who is known for being one of the fattest players in the world, won his 19th match of the season after one hour and 16 minutes.
Nishioka will next face former US Open winner Marin Cilic for a quarterfinal birth.
Other winners on the Thursday included Mattia Bellucci, Yunchaokete Bu, Roberto Carballes Baena, Rinky Hijikata, Alexander Shevchenko, Yasutaka Uchiyama and Coleman Wong.
Friday’s order of play will feature No. 2 seed Karen Khachanov and No. 7 seed Fabian Marozsan.
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