Shang claws past Etcheverry, Giron ousts defending champ in Eastbourne

#NextGenATP star Shang Juncheng earned victory in his first tour-level grass-court match on Monday at the Rothesay International, where he moved past seventh seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry 7-5, 3-6, 7-6(4).

The 19-year-old qualifier fired 39 winners and hung tough in the third-set tie-break to advance after two hours and 27 minutes.

The Chinese lefty, who sealed victory with a forehand winner, now holds a 9-10 record against Top 50 opponents. Shang, currently third in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah, plays Cameron Norrie or Emil Ruusuvuori in the second round.

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American Marcos Giron continued his strong start to the grass season when he took out fifth seed and defending champion Francisco Cerundolo 7-6(5), 7-6(4)

Giron last week defeated former Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini en route to the Halle quarter-finals after beginning the swing with victory over two-time Wimbledon champion Andy Murray in Stuttgart, where he pushed eventual champion Jack Draper to three sets.

Giron, who is 15-15 on the season, is now just one spot away from his career-high PIF ATP Live Ranking of No. 44. Against Cerundolo the California native dropped just five points on first serve and won 70 per cent of second serves.

British wild card Billy Harris backed up last week’s run to the quarter-finals at Queen’s by reaching the second round in Eastbourne. The 29-year-old downed countryman Jacob Fearnley 6-4, 7-6(7).

Harris is competing at a career-high No. 139 in the PIF ATP Rankings after reaching his first tour-level quarter-final in London. He will next meet Queen’s champion Tommy Paul.

Australian lucky loser Aleksandar Vukic beat Hungarian Fabian Marozsan 6-2, 6-4. Vukic advanced to the last eight on grass at the ATP 250 event in ‘s-Hertogenbosch earlier this month. Vukic next plays third seed Alexander Bublik

Australian Max Purcell defeated Serbian Laslo Djere 6-1, 4-6, 6-3. Purcell struck 10 aces according to Infosys ATP Stats to advance after two hours. With his win, the 2021 semi-finalist snapped a four-match losing streak.

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