Wong becomes first Hong Konger to reach main draw at a major in Open Era

Dino Prizmic booked his return to the Grand Slam stage with a stylish late surge on Friday afternoon at the US Open.

The Croatian #NextGenATP star downed Jason Kubler 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 in New York to secure his main-draw debut at the final major of the season. The 20-year-old Croatian fired 17 aces and converted six of 13 break points he earned to cap a two-hour, 23-minute triumph under the New York sun.

Prizmic, who is at a career-high No. 124 in the PIF ATP Rankings, will now prepare for the second main-draw appearance at a major. He also previously qualified at the 2024 Australian Open, where he made a big impression in a 6-2, 6-7(5), 3-6, 4-6 defeat on Rod Laver Arena against record 24-time Grand Slam titlist Novak Djokovic.

Following his promising showing against Djokovic in Melbourne, Prizmic’s development was hindered by a right wrist injury, but he has enjoyed a resurgent 2025 season. The Croatian reached five consecutive ATP Challenger Tour finals between late May and early August (winning two of them), while he also reached his second ATP Tour quarter-final on home soil in Umag in late July.

Currently fourth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, Prizmic is well-placed to secure a debut appearance at the season-ending Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF. He will hope to boost his chances by securing his first Grand Slam victory in the opening round in New York.

Jesper de Jong, Lloyd Harris and Jan-Lennard Struff were among the other ATP Tour stars to book their main-draw spot in New York on Friday. The World No. 80 De Jong overcame home favourite Mitchell Krueger 6-4, 6-1 to successfully qualify for the US Open at the fifth attempt.

Meanwhile former Top 40 stars Harris and Struff each earned straight-sets victories. South African Harris downed Daniel Merida Aguilar 6-1, 7-6(2), while Struff sank Arthur Cazaux 7-6(4), 6-3.

A trio of 21-year-olds — Martin Damm, Coleman Wong and Ignacio Buse — will make their Grand Slam main-draw debut in New York after prevailing in straight sets on Friday. Home favourite Damm defeated Yuta Shimizu 7-6(10), 6-4, while Wong sank Billy Harris 6-3, 6-4 to become the first player from Hong Kong to reach a major main draw in the Open Era. Peruvian Buse, an ATP Tour semi-finalist in Gstaad last month, beat Kimmer Coppejans 6-3, 6-4.