CHENGDU, September 16, 2024 (Press Release)
The singles main draw ceremony for the Chengdu Open took place on Monday, unveiling a series of intriguing matchups scheduled to unfold at the Sichuan International Tennis Centre from 17-24 September 2024.
Top seed Lorenzo Musetti headlines the top half of the draw alongside third seed Nicolas Jarry, fifth seed Adrian Mannarino and sixth seed Lorenzo Sonego. In the bottom half, second seed Alexander Bublik is joined by fourth seed Pedro Martinez, seventh seed Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and eighth seed Roman Safiullin.
Among the standout first-round matchups, China’s teenage sensation Shang Juncheng, known as Jerry, will face former world No.4 Kei Nishikori, who is making a comeback after facing a series of injury setbacks. Their only prior meeting was on the hard courts of Atlanta last year, where the 34-year-old Nishikori won in straight sets.
However, Jerry has enjoyed a breakthrough season, becoming the first Chinese teenager to crack the Top 100 since 1973, achieving this milestone in May 2024. Earlier in January, he made history by reaching the third round of the Australian Open, becoming the first Chinese man to do so in the Open Era.
The 19-year-old has also secured his biggest career wins this season, overcoming world No.16 Frances Tiafoe to reach his first ATP Tour semifinal in Hong Kong and defeating No.14 Ben Shelton en route to another semifinal in Atlanta. Jerry heads to Chengdu just one spot below his career-high ranking of No.66, achieved after a strong run into the third round of the US Open last month, which included a victory over Bublik.
With top four seeds receiving byes to the second round, the fifth to eight seeds will take centre stage in first round matches. The pick of the matches will see a battle between two former finalists, with world No. 56 Safiullin, who lost to Zverev last year, and Italian world No.79 Fabio Fognini, who lost to Bernard Tomic in 2018, set for a first-time meeting in the first round.
Meanwhile, Frenchman Adrian Mannarino drew a favourable opening match against a qualifier. The 36-year-old continues to reach new milestones in his 20th season on the ATP Tour, achieving a career-high ranking of No.17 earlier this year following a run to the fourth round of the Australian Open.
Another of the three Italians in the draw, Sonego will face Japan’s Taro Daniel in the first round, while rising star Mpetshi Perricard meets Chinese wild card Sun Fajing. Much like Shang Juncheng, 21-year-old Mpetshi Perricard has had a breakout year, recording his first Top 30 victories over Bublik and Tomas Martin Etcheverry en route to claiming his first title in Lyon this May. The six-foot-eight Frenchman also made a deep run at Wimbledon, progressing to the fourth round as a Lucky Loser, and achieved a career-high ranking of No.44 in July.
Chengdu ATP 250 Main Draw Singles pic.twitter.com/gPzPsR7pEK
— Tennis Draws (@DrawsTennis) September 16, 2024
In the doubles main draw, top seeds and defending champions Sadio Doumbia and Fabien Reboul from France will begin their title defence against fellow countrymen Mannarino and Alexandre Muller.
Meanwhile, second seeds Ivan Dodig and Rafael Matos will face Mpetshi Perricard and Pavel Kotov. Croatia’s Dodig returns as a former champion, having claimed the 2018 title with Mate Pavic, while Brazil’s Matos will be seeking to improve on last year’s performance when he finished as runner-up alongside Francisco Cabral.
All eight first-round qualifying matches are set for tomorrow, marking the official start of the tournament. The top-seeded qualifiers include Korea’s Hong Seongchan, Japan’s Shintaro Mochizuki, Spain’s Alejandro Moro Canas and Frenchman Terence Atmane.
Centre Court matches will begin at 1pm, with local Chinese players featured in all three matches. Bai Yan will face Japan’s Sho Shimabukuro, wild card Cui Jie will take on Chinese Taipei’s Hsu Yu Hsiou, and Charles Chen, also a wild card, will go up against Mochizuki.
