Chinese aces lay down a marker in New York

Chinese tennis has enjoyed a scintillating start to the season's final major, with men's ace Wu Yibing and women's star Wang Xinyu both securing smooth first-round wins to fuel their respective US Open ambitions.

Always an entertaining player to watch when healthy, China's 2017 US Open boys champion Wu has again put his blistering game on display in New York, after the injury-free world No 113 showed his attacking prowess to upset Australia's 93rd-ranked Adam Walton in a straight-sets win on Sunday, reaching the second round of the hard-court major for the first time in three years.

After some apparent opening jitters, and playing hesitantly on the baseline, Wu stepped up his game toward the end of the first set, dictated play with aggressive groundstrokes in the second and then kept his intensity to close out the match 7-6 (2), 6-2, 7-5 against the Aussie power server in two hours and 24 minutes on Court 11.

"I started slow and maybe played too cautiously from the baseline in the beginning," Wu, a 26-year-old former world No 54, said in his post-match interview with Chinese streaming platform Migu.

"I knew I held the advantage in baseline rallies and the match would come down to whether I could seize the crucial points. I stepped it up a gear on key points during the first-set tiebreak, which turned the tide in my favor.

"Then I noticed my opponent's first-serve percentage started to drop, so I adjusted my strategy accordingly, engaging in more extended rallies and frequent baseline movements to wear him down and build up my advantage."

It's only the third main-draw appearance at the US Open over the past nine years for Wu since his 2017 junior breakthrough in Flushing Meadows, with the majority of his senior career affected by injuries, which have sidelined the talented, attack-minded ace for lengthy periods almost every time his career looked set to take off.

Wu's been conditioned to stay upbeat, having overcome multiple long layoffs and mental struggles, as he sets sail again with a healthy body, at least for now.

"The US Open has always been a lucky tournament for me," said Wu, who also achieved his best Grand Slam result to date in New York, reaching the round of 32 in his major main draw debut in 2022.

He carried that momentum into 2023 to win China's first ATP Tour singles title at the Dallas Open the following February.

"I felt far more relaxed competing here in New York. After I fought back to win the first set, I gained solid momentum and played with greater freedom and composure for the rest of the match," added Wu on Sunday.

Wu will face the winner between Italy's 30th seed Matteo Arnaldi and Australia's James Duckworth in the next round on Tuesday.

In a later women's first-round encounter, China's current highest-ranked star Wang made a serious statement of her intent, as the world No 43 sent Colombia's Emiliana Arango packing in straight sets to reach the round of 64 a fourth straight time in New York.

The 24-year-old Wang produced a poised and efficient display on Court 6, edging out Arango in first-serve points won, net points won and break-point conversion to control the match and clinch the 6-4,6-2 win in one hour and 18 minutes.

The victory has extended Wang's dominant head-to-head record against Arango to 3-0, following consecutive wins in Doha this year and Cincinnati last season, proving that her flat, heavy-hitting style works against the Colombian's looping, clay-built strokes.

And Wang made no secret of that.

"I had a very clear game plan before stepping onto the court," said Wang, who's sailed past the opening round in six straight Slam main draws.

"I have played against my opponent before, so I targeted an early break of serve from the start. I aimed to open up sharp angles with my first two strokes and performed well at the net throughout the match.

"There was a little tight spell in the middle of the second set," Wang recalled. "But my service game was in great form today, which gave me huge support and helped me stabilize my rhythm during the tricky moments."

Wang will need her attacking firepower, highlighted by hitting 31 winners against Arango's eight, when she meets the victor of a tough all-Russian tie between Anna Kalinskaya and Anna Blinkova in the second round.

Wang's best result at the US Open was her round-of-16 appearance in 2023.

Another Chinese woman Zhang Shuai lost to 31st-seeded Canadian star Leylah Fernandez 6-3, 6-2 on Sunday, ending her 13th main-draw campaign in New York, the most among all Chinese, men and women, sooner than expected.

"I am just happy to be able to still walk on the court at a major like the US Open and enjoy the match in 2026," said the 37-year-old veteran, whose best results include reaching the quarterfinals at the 2016 Australian Open and Wimbledon in 2019.