CHINESE teenager Shang Juncheng made history on day one at the Australian Open by becoming the first male from his nation to reach the second round of the Grand Slam in the Open era. Previously no Chinese male had ever won a first round match at the event, but the 17-year-old managed to achieve the feat with an upset four-set victory over Oscar Otte, 6-2 6-4 6-7 7-5.

Way out on Court 13, Shang was able to smash his way past the German world number 74, with the left-hander continuing his form from qualifying to reach the Round of 64. The world number 194th overcame Spanish veteran Fernando Verdasco, as well as Hungarians Zsombor Piros and Fabian Marozsan in qualifying to book his place in the main draw.

Coming in as an underdog against Otte, the powerful lefty smashed home 53 winners to the German’s 40, though the latter was largely made up of aces. The Chinese talent had to withstand 19 aces off his opponent’s racquet, with Otte also producing seven double faults. Still, he won a massive 80 per cent of his first serve points, though looked vulnerable off his second serve (42 per cent).

The match lasted two hours and 56 minutes, with Shane only serving the three aces and at a far lower speed than Otte, but winning 78 and 58 per cent of his first and second serve points. While both players produced 33 unforced errors, Shang was far more clinical with his offensive ability, hitting the 13 additional winners.

Shang’s ability to hit winners from all over the court was what stood out. In particular, his 30 winners from his forehand groundstrokes was a huge advantage, and though the bulk of his unforced errors also came from that side (21), he was willing to take the game on. That lead him to victory in just under three hours and book his place in the second round to face 16th seed, Frances Tiafoe.

“I think it’s quite a big accomplishment,” Shang said post-match. “To do this, it’s very special for me. “I’m a little surprised that I came this fast, but at the same time, I think it’s all the hard work from my team and myself that paid off.

“It’s one of the best moments I have had so far in my career… I’m just very excited to be on court, and everything is a learning process for me. I’m just super happy to be here.”

Shang is the youngest player in the men’s singles draw, and said the win would mean the world to the nation.

“I think it’s huge for Chinese men’s tennis,” Shang said. ““We have had really good players from the women’s side but not really big names in the men’s… I’m very lucky that I’m part of this team. Hopefully we can do something big in the future.”