Chinese World No. 50 Shang Juncheng suffered a 4-3(3), 2-4, 4-1, 4-3(5) defeat on his Next Gen ATP Finals debut, after falling to France's Luca Van Assche in four sets, in the Red Group opener in Jeddah.

The 2023 semifinalist started strong with several forehand winners, en route to take the opening tie-breaker 7-3. Shang lifted his maiden tour-level title in October in Chengdu, and fought back with a forehand volley, before winning the second set 4-2. Van Assche's season highlight came early in the year, with a third-round run at the Australian Open. The world number 128 dominated to claim the third 4-1. The fourth set went into a tie-breaker again, and Van Assche won the extra-session 7-5 when Shang's forehand went wide. The 20-year-old Frenchman will next face Alex Michelsen from the USA, while the 19-year-old Chinese will take on another American Nishesh Basavareddy later on Thursday.