20-year-old was Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF semi-finalist in 2023

He may have enjoyed two strokes of luck, but Luca Van Assche produced a classy overall opening performance on Wednesday at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF.

The Frenchman overcame fourth seed Shang Juncheng 4-3(3), 2-4, 4-1, 4-3(5) in the first match of the week in Jeddah. Van Assche, who reached the semi-finals in 2023, capitalised on an inconsistent showing from his third-seeded opponent to seal a one-minute, 56-minute win and move to 1-0 in Red Group.

“I think the experience of last year helped me a lot today, because I already played with these rules,” said Van Assche after his maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with Shang. “For Jerry, it was his first time, so it’s difficult to be prepared to play sets of four games and all these rules. I remember my first match last year against Abdullah [Shelbayh] it was difficult to adapt, and it was easier for me because I already played four matches last year."

Van Assche won two points on serve — at 1-2 in the first set and on the first point of the second set — thanks to the No Let rule, which has been reintroduced for the 2024 edition of the 20-and-under event. It dictates that play will continue even if the ball touches the net during a serve, provided it lands in the correct service box.

After the first of his serves trickled into the service box after catching the net cord, Van Assche held his hands up while giving Shang an apologetic grin. He was smiling again after beginning the second set with a similar winner, although Shang later enjoyed a net cord ace of his own early in the third set.

“I think I managed to be very consistent during the whole match,” said Van Assche, who converted two of 13 break points he earned, according to Infosys ATP Stats. “He had very good ups, but also downs. Sometimes he was playing like fire and sometimes he was making mistakes. I knew I needed to be very solid from beginning to end, so I’m very happy with the way I played today and I hope to continue like this across the next couple of days.”

Despite defeat on his Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF debut, Shang still has the opportunity to reach the semi-finals in Jeddah. The 19-year-old Chinese star, who lifted his maiden ATP Tour title in October in Chengdu, will seek an improved showing in his second group match against either second seed Alex Michelsen or seventh seed Nishesh Basavareddy.