Mmoh Revives Junior Rivalry to Upset Khachanov in Hong Kong
Under Hong Kong’s humid glare, Michael Mmoh outfought a familiar foe in straight-set tiebreaks, doubling his 2025 wins and signaling a bold restart to the year.
In the sticky heat of Victoria Park, Michael Mmoh shook off a lean 2025 to upset Karen Khachanov 7-6(2), 7-6(4) at the Bank of China Hong Kong Tennis Open. The American qualifier, ranked No. 285, relied on sharp returns and angled backhands to neutralize the fourth seed’s power, reaching his seventh ATP quarterfinal. This marked his first Top 20 victory since 2023, when he also dispatched Khachanov at the US Open, doubling his ATP Tour wins from all of last season in just one week.
Mmoh’s movement on these medium-paced hard courts let him redirect Khachanov’s flat groundstrokes with crosscourt slices, forcing the Russian into defensive lobs. At 5-4 in the second set, Mmoh failed to serve out but regrouped in the tiebreak, using inside-out forehands to wrong-foot his opponent and convert match point. The 27-year-old’s composure echoed the tactical poise he’d built through challenger battles, turning a rivalry that began in junior circuits into a professional edge.
“Funnily enough, my first ITF junior win was against Karen Khachanov, so we’ve been battling from the age of 14,” said Mmoh, who now leads World No. 17 Khachanov 2-0 in their ATP Head2Head series. “He’s a great guy who’s had an unbelievable career, so just to share the court with him, I knew I needed to play at the highest level possible.”
Junior echoes fuel tiebreak triumphs
Their history stretched back to age 14, when Mmoh first toppled Khachanov in an ITF junior event, a memory that surfaced amid Thursday’s baseline exchanges. Khachanov’s heavy topspin pushed Mmoh wide in rallies, but the American countered with a steady 1–2 pattern, setting up down-the-line backhands after wide serves. This upset wasn’t mere luck; Mmoh’s improved footwork allowed him to cover the court, drawing 12 unforced errors from the taller player and winning 70 percent of his second-serve points.
As the crowd’s murmurs built during the second tiebreak, Mmoh’s focus sharpened, his forehand winners landing with precision on the grippy surface. The victory carried emotional weight, erasing doubts from a 2025 limited to two ATP wins amid injuries and ranking drops. Now leading 2-0 in their ATP series, Mmoh steps into the quarters with momentum, facing countryman Marcos Giron, who earlier ousted seventh seed and defending champion Alexandre Muller 6-4, 7-6(4) through relentless depth and flat returns.
Shang carves home path to quarters
Earlier, Chinese lefty Shang Juncheng made history as the first player to reach all three Hong Kong quarterfinals since the ATP 250 returned in 2024, striking 24 winners in a 6-3, 6-4 win over fifth seed Lorenzo Sonego. The 20-year-old, returning from a six-month foot injury that sidelined him through much of 2025, used his lefty serve to slice wide and open angles for inside-in forehands. Sonego’s one-handed backhand struggled against the spin, as Shang broke serve twice without facing a break point himself.
Shang’s poise on these outdoor hard courts, where quick transitions reward aggression, positioned him to exploit Sonego’s positioning errors. The home crowd’s energy amplified every point, their cheers echoing off the stands as he closed sets with authority. Next, he faces second seed Alexander Bublik or Botic van de Zandschulp, a matchup that tests his rising serve accuracy—78 percent against Sonego—against volatile baseline games.
Quarterfinals test early momentum
For Mmoh, the all-American clash with Giron adds national stakes, pitting two qualifiers against the pressure of humid nights and ranking points. Giron’s consistent returning, evident in his upset of Muller, demands Mmoh sustain his net approaches and vary underspin to disrupt rhythms. Across the draw, Shang’s surge hints at a breakout on familiar soil, blending lefty leverage with the crowd’s roar.
Hong Kong’s hard courts favor these tactical resets, where underdogs like Mmoh and Shang redirect power into offense. As the Australian Open nears, these quarterfinals could reshape trajectories, turning early fire into sustained runs amid Asia’s demanding swing.
