Three #NextGenATP players, Karen Khachanov, Jared Donaldson and Taylor Fritz, all visited the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. The trio, who are competing at the Chengdu Open, saw giant baby and red pandas during their morning trip and were definitely smitten by the cuddly animals, especially Donaldson, who came prepared with a variety of panda trivia. “Did you know that China owns the rights to every panda in the world, except two? Those two are in Mexico,” said Donaldson. “My mum would be very happy that I got this opportunity to go out and see the pandas.” Fritz said, “We got to see all kinds of pandas and it’s really cool to see what Chengdu is famous for....
Mikael Ymer and Jared Donaldson learn the ancient local art of calligraphy and play a game of mini-tennis during a visit to the Wangjian Lou in Chengdu. Video and photo courtesy Chengdu Open
American Jared Donaldson fought hard on Monday, weathering a late comeback from fellow #NextGenATP and Greek qualifier Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Chengdu Open for a 6-7(2), 7-5, 7-5 victory over two hours and 25 minutes. World No. 58 Donaldson, now 19-17 on the year, led 5-2 in the deciding set, before losing 10 of the next 13 points to ensure a tense end to the pair’s first meeting. Tsitsipas, 19, dropped to 0-7 lifetime in tour-level matches, while Donaldson will next face sixth-seeded Briton Kyle Edmund or Bernard Tomic of Australia. “I think the entire match was very close and Stefanos played a great match,” said Donaldson. “Obviously, at 5-2 in the third set I didn’t play a great service...
#NextGenATP players Jared Donaldson and Mikael Ymer took the opportunity to experience the local culture in Chengdu on Sunday as they visited ‘Wangjian Lou’, one of Chengdu’s cultural attractions that roughly translates as ‘river view pavilion’. The American and Swede took part in a game of mini-tennis in the park before learning the ancient local art of calligraphy from a ‘sifu’ (master). “There are not a lot of similarities between American and Chinese culture - we don’t have bamboo and cultural places like this,” said Donaldson. “It’s a really beautiful setting. I remember learning calligraphy in the fourth grade, but I haven’t practised it since - I think I did a good job though! “I’m lucky to have this opportunity...
The Emirates ATP Race To Milan is heating up this week in New York as the season's final Grand Slam, the US Open, begins on Monday. Race leader Alexander Zverev of Germany has already qualified for the inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals, to be held 7-11 November in Milan. But six more automatic-entry spots remain in the Race, which will determine seven of the eight players who compete at the 21-and-under event. The eighth player will be chosen by wild card. Buy Tickets Now #NextGenATP Karen Khachanov is currently in second place in the Race. Khachanov, who reached the semi-finals in Halle before falling to eventual champion Roger Federer, is the 25th seed at the US Open and faces Chinese...
