Next Generation ATP Finals: Coleman Wong steps closer to Jeddah with Challenger event win
Hongkonger’s win over Taiwan’s Tseng Chun-hsin takes him into the second round but he remains in ninth spot on Next Gen table
Hong Kong tennis star Coleman Wong Chak-lam remains on course for a spot at the Next Generation ATP Finals in Saudi Arabia next month after reaching the second round of the ATP Challenger event in Japan.
The city’s top male player dominated Tseng Chun-hsin of Taiwan, ranked 46 places higher, in a match that lasted just short of 75 minutes on Monday. Wong fired eight aces at Tseng, breaking his opponent twice in each set, before walking away with a convincing 6-2, 6-2 win.
The victory set up a round-of-16 tie against Australian Alex Bolt, who sits 20 places below Wong at No 179, on Wednesday.
Speaking to the ATP just before the Challenger event in Matsuyama, Wong, who became the first Hongkonger to win an ATP Tour match since 1972 when he beat China’s Wu Yibing in Hangzhou in September, said he was keen to feature at King Abdullah Sports City come December.
“I really hope that I can make it because it’s my goal,” he said. “And seeing most of the players play the Next Gen Finals before making it to the Top 20 or Top 10 means a lot to me. I really want to be one of them.”
Ranked No 159 in the world, Wong sits in ninth place on the Next Gen table with 334 points – just outside the top eight that will play in Jeddah from December 18 to 22.
