Meet the world No 186 looking to shock Carlos Alcaraz in US Open Round 1 action
Carlos Alcaraz heads into the US Open as a huge contender for the title, having won the tournament two years ago – and winning the French Open and Wimbledon earlier this summer.
Alcaraz will start his US Open campaign against Australia’s Li Tu, who is making his main draw debut in New York.
Tu may not be as famous as his round one opponent, but his story is a fascinating one.
US Open Run
Tu is making just his second Grand Slam singles main draw appearance, having come through qualifying at Flushing Meadows.
The world No 186 was not projected to even make it through the qualifying draw, with the Australian unseeded in the draw.
Tu began his campaign with a straight-sets win over Alejandro Moro Canas before beating Marco Trungellti – again in straight sets – to reach the final round of qualifying.
He was up against it in round three against sixth seed Jesper de Jong but rallied from a set down to beat the Dutchman 3-6, 6-1, 7-5 and seal his US Open main draw debut.
The only other time Tu played a major main draw was the 2021 Australian Open, where he received a wildcard and was beaten by Feliciano Lopez in four sets in round one.
Career Highlights
This qualifying run is arguably the highlight of the 28-year-old’s career to date, though he has had some success on the Challenger Tour.
The Australian won the biggest title of his career in October 2022, defeating Wu Yibing to lift the Seoul Open Challenger title.
Tu was also runner-up at the Lexington Challenger earlier this summer – beaten by rising star Joao Fonseca – while he has won nine titles on the ITF World Tennis Tour.
Having made his top 200 debut in 2022, he picked up his first ATP-level win in 2023, coming through qualifying at the Hall of Fame Open before a round one victory against Aleksandar Vukic.
Earlier this season, he also came through qualifying to reach the main draw of the Brisbane International, falling to Daniel Altmaier.
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Early Life and Career
The son of Chinese immigrants in Adelaide, Tu initially played badminton as a child but was advised by a former coach to play tennis instead.
He was one of the top-ranked juniors in Australia throughout his teens but initially gave up the sport at the age of 18, having lost motivation and interest.
During his time away from the court he set up a coaching business, and it was during that time he decided to start again pursuing a professional career.
A friend of both Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis, Tu officially returned to action in 2020.
Inspiration
Tu’s career inspiration is his mum, Yu Ping Zheng, who passed away from lung cancer in September 2022 – just a month before his Seoul triumph.
The 28-year-old is still inspired by his mum and believes she was there in spirit when he sealed his place in the main draw.
“I was a little bit nervous in the third set and I remember looking up at the change of ends, seeing her face, and just saying, ‘We’ve got this, we’ve got this, we’ve got this’,” Tu told the ATP Tour.
“She’s still with me. I truly believe that, and I just want to make my parents proud. I know no matter what I do, they would be. But I just want to make them proud.
“When I qualified, so many people reposted it, so many people commented.
“I forget that there’s so many people involved and I think that I could play one of the best players on a stadium like Arthur Ashe Stadium, biggest tennis court in the world, biggest tennis stadium in the world, have mum watching, that will stay with me forever.
“I just hope that I can put in a good performance, and I can make my parents proud, especially, mum.”
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