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During the first few weeks of October, we will be treated to one of the season’s most crucial events. For days, we had known the main seeds and the majority of the players that would be in the main draw, but it was unclear who would be the Shanghai Masters Wildcards. Find out who the invited players are for the first round in Shanghai.
2023 Shanghai Masters wildcards
Contents
Diego Schwartzman (In 2nd Round)
The Argentinean is having his worst season as a professional tennis player. He has only 12 victories and 25 losses thus far. He has a losing record on both hardcourt and clay.
His finest results were at the Miami Open and Roland Garros, where he advanced to the third round. In the remaining tournaments, he was eliminated in the second or first round, while in others, he did not even qualify for the main draw.
Jiri Lehecka vs Diego Schwartzman
After three tough sets, the Argentine defeated Luca Van Assche in the first round. After dropping the opening set, Schwartzman needed to flip the score around. Diego, on the other hand, played with more confidence in each of his shots in the second and third sets.
In the second round, he will face Jiri Lehecka, one of the Czech Republic’s rising stars. As one of the tournament’s top seeds, Lehecka will be playing in his first match. This will be the 31-year-old Argentine’s debut fight with the 21-year-old Czech.
Juncheng Shang (Out 1st Round)
The 18-year-old is one of China’s most promising tennis players. This year Shang reached 149th place in the ATP rankings and is expected to be in the top 100 soon.
One of the next steps for the Chinese tennis player is to focus entirely on high-level tournaments. This will allow him to earn more points and position himself better. It will also give him a lot of experience that will allow him to establish himself.
Yosuke Watanuki beat Juncheng Shang 7-6 4-6 6-4
The experience of Japan’s Yosuke Watanuki excelled the 18-year-old. It should be emphasized that Shang maintained his confidence throughout the match, which helped him win the second set. The Chinese tennis player demonstrated many excellent characteristics, but he still has a long way to go. Perhaps in the next years, we will see him more frequently in these kind of contests.
Fabio Fognini (Out 1st Round)
The 36-year-old has dropped precipitously from the top of the ATP rankings. He was in the top 30 last year and is now out of the top 100.
For the Italian, the last few years have been disastrous, but this has been the worst. In hardcourt matches, he has a record of 0 wins and 5 loses. In the first round of the Shanghai Masters 2023, Fabio Fognini will be trying for his first win on this surface.
Thanasis Kokkinakis beat Fabio Fognini 6-2 6-4
One of the Shanghai Masters wildcards’ trip lasted only 1 hour and 19 minutes. Fognini was ineffective in the first and second points he won. Fabio lost a total of three serves across the two sets, failing to convert even a single breakpoint.
Rigele Te (Out 1st Round)
The Chinese tennis star will compete in his first Masters 1000 tournament of the season. Throughout the year, the 25-year-old has only competed in ITF tournaments and Challengers. His record is 27 vectors and 17, yet his opponents are not among the world’s finest.
Te was even champion at Sanxenxo, but the victories did not provide him with enough points to go up in the ATP rankings. Rigele’s career has not been particularly outstanding; his top ranking was 395, and he is presently ranked 489.
Jaume Antoni Clar beat Rigele Te 6-2 6-4
The Chinese player was a Shanghai Masters Wildcard who was partnered with a less difficult opponent. Jaume Munar had yet to win his first hardcourt match of the season. Rigele Te was unable to overpower the Spanish player.
Bu Yunchaokete (Out 2nd Round)
The 21-year-old is one of China’s most promising tennis players right now. Bu Yunchaote has 31 victories and 19 losses in over twenty events. In addition, he won a Challenger title in Seoul.
Yunchaokete previously lost in the Guangzhou Challenger semi-finals. His participation in the 2023 Shanghai Masters will be a significant boost to his career, and we may see him more frequently in high-level tournaments in the coming years.
Sebastian Korda beat Bu Yunchaokete 6-4 7-6
The Chinese player was one of the two Shanghai Masters Wildcard participants who played the most matches and won at least one. In the first round, he defeated Miomit Kecmanovic in three sets, albeit the last set was abandoned after the Russian player quit.
In the second round, he met American Sebastian Korda, who posed a similar test. The American player imposed his style of play and rendered Yunchaokete’s shots ineffective. This match lasted barely two sets and 17 games. Although it was brief, it was a memorable event for Bu.
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