appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Paul McNamara

Coleman Wong Chak-lam said he would not have chosen anywhere else to reach his first ATP Tour quarter-final after beating world No 40 Gabriel Diallo in the Bank of China Hong Kong Tennis Open on Wednesday.
The Hongkonger showed plenty of character to recover from a poor first set and win 1-6, 7-5, 7-5 to book a last-eight clash with No 1 seed Lorenzo Musetti on Friday.
It will be the world No 150’s first trip to the latter stages of an ATP event and he said he would “keep going and keep dreaming” after just his third career victory over a top-50 ranked opponent.
A home crowd wrapped up against the chill on Victoria Park Tennis Stadium were kept quiet during an opening set that Diallo dominated. Wong fended off three break points in the second game, but could not repeat the feat a fourth time. He showed the briefest flash of temper after he dropped serve again to trail 5-1.
“The first set was so fast I felt I was going to be out within one hour,” Wong said. “I was really happy I could adjust my level and compete and fight.”

The towering Diallo was not broken in his first-round win over Jesper de Jong, but Wong sourced joy against the Canadian’s serve after claiming three straight points from 40-30 down in the sixth game of the second set to move 4-2 in front.
His fans responded accordingly as he gestured for them to raise the volume. It is a tactic Wong could employ more to make his opponents feel lonelier on his home court.
The 21-year-old saved a break point to move 5-2 in front, then climbed into a forehand return to create a set point in the next. He smiled wryly after Diallo cushioned a backhand volley onto the baseline to stay alive.
Diallo duly broke back, clenching his fist after scurrying to the net to complete a fine cross-court pickup.
Wong staved off two break points at 5-5 to stop the bleeding, then won game 12 at the fourth time of asking to draw level.
“I tried to stay calm and keep breathing in the big moments,” Wong said. “It was so tight and so cold.”
Wong forged 3-1 ahead in the decider, then fired down aces when Diallo had opportunities to break back in the fifth and seventh games. Serving for the match at 5-3, however, Wong played a poor game, coughing it up with a backhand into the tramlines.
“I got a little panicked and didn’t serve well,” he said. “It was so neck-and-neck and it felt like anybody’s match. The margin is so slim.”
In an echo of the second set, a 5-2 advantage became 5-5, only for Wong to hold to love, then swarm all over Diallo’s faltering serve and capitalise on his first match point to triumph in two hours and 29 minutes.

Wong lost his only previous meeting with Musetti in the first round in Hong Kong in 2024, but the Italian will find the 21-year-old a different proposition from the callow teenager of two years ago.
“Lorenzo’s a tough opponent, I’m just going to play my best and see what happens,” said Wong, before leaving to eat char siu and turn his thoughts to his second-round doubles match alongside Diallo on Thursday.
“To get this win today is very important for my game, and for my team to know I belong here.
“I kept believing and trying and doing different things, and I managed to prevail. I’m really excited to be in my first quarter-final. I’m going to play my game and enjoy it.”
Mainland China hopes, meanwhile, now rest on the shoulders of Jerry Shang Juncheng, after Wu Yibing surrendered a one-set lead to go down 3-6, 6-2, 6-1 to 2024 champion Andrey Rublev.
The notoriously tetchy Rublev kept a lid on his temper after the first set slipped away and he won eight straight games from 2-2 in the second to comprehensively see of Wu’s challenge. He will play Nuno Borges in the quarter-finals on Friday.
Shang will play his second-round match against Lorenzo Sonego first on centre court on Thursday. Defending champion Alexandre Muller has been exiled to Court No 1 for his round-two meeting with Marcos Giron of America.


Hong Kong hopes to begin Victoria Park Tennis Centre redevelopment by 2030

Strengthening ‘ticket economy’ among Hong Kong lawmaker’s proposals for sports industry

Japanese tennis trailblazer Kei Nishikori to retire at end of season after ‘hanging on’

Only grand slams and masters tennis tournaments should offer ranking points, Medvedev says

Bank of China Hong Kong Tennis Open

Hong Kong Tennis Open: Coleman Wong will ‘keep dreaming’ after reaching quarter-finals

Coleman Wong celebrates after reaching the last 8 of the Hong Kong Tennis Open. Photo: Elson Li

Coleman Wong fires up the crowd during his second round match. Photo: Elson Li

Gabriel Diallo won the first set with ease and then lost by the finest of margins. Photo: Elson Li

Winter Olympics hero Wu Dajing retires after failing to qualify for 2026 Games

Wu Dajing celebrates after the mixed team relay final  at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Photo: Xinhua

Wu Dajing celebrates during the medal ceremony for the men’s 500m short track event in South Korea. Photo: EPA-EFE

Ex-China shooting star jailed for smuggling gun parts into mainland via Hong Kong

Tian Hong and her son,  Fu Yihan, have been jailed for 10 and 6 years respectively. Photo: Shutterstock Images

Tian Hong and her son, Fu Yihan, have appealed their sentences. Photo: Handout

Sport

Tennis

Home star recovers from one set down to beat No 6 seed Gabriel Diallo in a clash lasting more than two hours at Victoria Park


Home star recovers from one set down to beat No 6 seed Gabriel Diallo in a clash lasting more than two hours at Victoria Park.


Coleman Wong Chak-lam

Hong Kong Tennis Open: Coleman Wong will ‘keep dreaming’ after reaching quarter-finals

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Home star recovers from one set down to beat No 6 seed Gabriel Diallo in a clash lasting more than two hours at Victoria Park

Home star recovers from one set down to beat No 6 seed Gabriel Diallo in a clash lasting more than two hours at Victoria Park