China's Bu Yunchaokete continues to make a splash in his short time as a professional tennis player after qualifying for the 2024 U.S. Open. /CFP
Tennis is a truly mystical sport where you have to give it your all to find the joy of competition. Those were the sentiments of Chinese rising star Bu Yunchaokete, who has been making a splash in the tennis world since last season, after reaching the latest landmark in his career.
In just over two years, the young talent from northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has gone from an unknown newcomer to lifting his first ATP Challenger Tour trophy in Seoul and reaching a career-high ranking of World No. 164.
In May, the 22-year-old claimed his first ATP Challenger Tour title on home turf at the Wuxi Open, becoming the youngest Chinese player to win multiple ATP Challenger Tour titles.
Bu's latest significant breakthrough came on Thursday at the U.S. Open qualifiers, where he caused a stir by defeating third-seeded Russian Aslan Karatsev in three sets to secure his first appearance in a Grand Slam main draw.
After dropping the first set 6-1, Bu fought back to win the next two sets 6-3, 6-4 and seal a 2-1 victory. He now joins Zhang Zhizhen, Wu Yibing and Shang Juncheng as the fourth male player from the Chinese mainland to reach the main draw at Flushing Meadows.
China's Zheng Qinwen kisses her gold medal after defeating Croatia's Donna Vekic in the women's singles tennis final at the Roland Garros stadium at the Summer Olympics in Paris, France, August 3, 2024. /CFP
The milestone also marks record-high Chinese representation at the U.S. Open, with 11 players set to compete after Zheng Qinwen, Wang Xinyu, Yuan Yue, Wang Xiyu, Wang Yafan, Zhang Shuai, Wang Qiang, and Zheng Saisai made it to the main draw on the women's side, while Bu, Zhang and Shang clinched places in the men's bracket.
In 2022, China had four players earn direct spots in the U.S. Open main draw and three more made it through the qualifiers, with a total of five eventually reaching the round of 32.
At the event's 2023 edition, the Chinese contingent set a record of all seven players winning their first-round matches and advancing to the second round. Zheng Qinwen went on to reach the quarterfinals in singles while Wang Xinyu made it to the round of 16 in singles and the semifinals in women's doubles, while the mixed doubles pair of Zhu Lin and Zhang Zhizhen advanced to the round of 32 for the country's best overall performance in recent years.
Ahead of the U.S. Open, Zheng made history by winning the women's singles gold medal at the Paris Summer Olympics, while Zhang Zhizhen teamed up with Wang Xinyu to clinch silver in mixed doubles. Those achievements have left Chinese tennis fans eagerly anticipating what surprises the country's players might have in store at the final Grand Slam of the year.