'The No. 756 in the world defeated the No. 92' Jeon Yun-seong crushes a powerhouse ranked 664 spots above him in a major upset... Defeats former champion to reach 'Seoul Open quarterfinals'

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Jeon Yun-seong (Anseong City Hall, world No. 756) defeated a powerhouse ranked No. 92 in the world rankings to advance to the quarterfinals of the 2026 Eugene Investment & Securities Seoul Open Challenger tennis tournament.

On the 28th, Jeon Yun-seong dominated second seed Fu Yunchaokete (China, No. 92) with a set score of 2-0 (7-5, 6-4) in the second round of singles at the center court of Seoul Olympic Park Tennis Center.

Fu Yunchaokete is the winner of this tournament in 2023. Jeon Yun-seong avenged his defeat in the first round of the Busan Open Challenger last April, successfully reaching the quarterfinals of a Challenger event for the 11th time in his career. At the Seoul Open, he stepped onto the quarterfinal stage again for the first time in three years since reaching the semifinals in 2023.

The match content was also excellent. Jeon Yun-seong succeeded in breaking serve first after a tense deuce battle early in the first set, leading by a game score of 5-3. He then conceded his own service game in the 10th game without winning a single point, allowing the score to tie at 5-5. However, he immediately broke the opponent's service game again to regain the initiative and ultimately took the first set.

In the second set, he demonstrated even more stable performance. He did not allow the opponent a single break point, securing the victory.

After the match, Jeon Yun-seong reflected through the tournament organizers, "In the past, I would have become anxious and felt bad when I got broken. I tried to play calmly with the mindset of starting from scratch."

The secret to his improved performance lay in his backhand and serve. During his service period at the Military Sports Agency, Jeon Yun-seong focused on improving his backhand, which had been considered a weakness.

He explained, "Originally, I felt a lot of pressure when the ball came to my backhand side, but now I can handle it calmly." He added, "It seemed like my opponent today tried to attack my backhand but was surprised when strong shots came back."

He further added, "In the second set, I reduced my serve speed and focused on direction and probability. When the first serve goes in, the opponent feels much greater pressure."

Olympic Park is a special place for Jeon Yun-seong. A graduate of Seoul Songpa-gu Toseong Elementary School, he learned tennis there since childhood. At the venue that day, spectators shouted "Jeon Yun-seong fighting!" and sent him enthusiastic support.

Jeon Yun-seong said, "There were times when training was so hard that I wanted to quit, but going through those periods seems to have shaped who I am today." He continued, "I am grateful to the coaches who taught me. I feel much more energized when playing in Seoul."

Jeon Yun-seong rose to a personal best world ranking of No. 233 in 2019, but his ranking declined as he was unable to participate in tournaments for nearly a year due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. After enlisting in the Military Sports Agency in 2025 and being discharged last July, he is challenging again.

He resolved, "I have never been able to climb back up since then, but I hope this will be that opportunity."

His quarterfinal opponent is another qualifier, Omar Zashika (Australia, No. 386). Zashika defeated Lloyd Harris (South Africa, No. 108) 2-0 (6-3, 6-1) in the second round.

Jeon Yun-seong revealed, "I have known him since our junior days. He has fast feet and a tenacious style, so we call him 'Hong Seong-chan of Australia' among ourselves." He added, "I want to prepare well and show you an exciting match."

Meanwhile, Korean players continued their strong performance in doubles as well. The team of Nam Ji-sung (Dangjin City Hall) and Pruchya Isarot (Thailand) and the team of Park Ui-seong (Daegu City Hall) and Kim Dong-ju (Gimpo City Hall) both advanced to the quarterfinals.

Nam Ji-sung (doubles No. 123), a silver medalist in men's doubles at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, teamed up with Isarot (doubles No. 107) to defeat the team of Matsui Toshihide (Japan) and Ramkumar Ramanathan (India) 2-0 (6-3, 7-6<0>).

Nam Ji-sung reflected, "In doubles, even if it looks like a three-game difference, it is ultimately just one break apart. I played with the mindset of 'just break them once.'"

However, his physical condition not being at 100% is a variable. Nam Ji-sung, who won six times in Challenger doubles this year, recently suffered from a worsening shoulder injury.

He said, "It really hurt yesterday. I wondered if it was right to compete." He added, "But this is a tournament held at home, and I lost many ranking points because I could not play in tournaments in September and October. I will manage my condition as best as I can and try to do what I can."

The Nam Ji-sung-Isarot team faces the Sakamoto Rei-Jay Friend team in the quarterfinals. The Sakamoto-Friend team defeated third seeds Nathaniel Ramons and Jackson Widrow (both from the United States) 2-0 (7-6<3>, 7-6<6>) in the first round.

Nam Ji-sung expressed confidence, saying, "Both players are aggressive hitters who hit their own shots, so I am wary of them," while adding, "Since the seeded team has dropped out, I actually think it is an opportunity."

Park Ui-seong, who shared the Asian Games silver medal with Nam Ji-sung, also advanced to the quarterfinals as a partner with Kim Dong-ju. The Park Ui-seong-Kim Dong-ju team came from behind to win 2-1 (5-7, 6-3, 10-8) against the Jeon Yun-seong-Kim Jang-jun (University of Virginia) team.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original