The Washington Open is well underway, with the likes of Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton looking to begin the American hard-court swing on a strong note.
A number of recognisable faces are still playing in the tournament this year, despite the early upset of Lorenzo Musetti and the last-minute withdrawal of Holger Rune.
There are a number of lesser-known players competing in Washington, including Matteo Arnaldi and Gabriel Diallo.
One particular player has been making waves in DC, and he faces former world number one Daniil Medvedev in the round of 16.
Wu Yibing is showing why he was junior world number one
Wu Yibing came into this tournament as a relatively nondescript figure. Ranked 243 in the world, Wu had to qualify for the main draw in Washington and was not expected to compete with some of the high-ranking players competing in DC.
However, Wu had other ideas. After comprehensively defeating Gael Monfils 6-3 6-1, the Chinese star shocked reigning Canadian Open champion Alexei Popyrin, winning 7-5 5-7 6-3.
If you dig a little deeper into Wu’s background, you come to realise that the Chinese star has a serious amount of untapped potential.
After reaching the final of the Orange Bowl in 2016, Wu became junior world number one in 2017. He then went on to win both the junior singles and doubles titles at the 2017 US Open.
Wu made his ATP Tour debut at the 2017 Chengdu Open before playing his first Masters tournament in Shanghai.
However, the Chinese star suffered serious injury setbacks from 2019 to 2022. During this period he underwent elbow surgery while also having lower back, shoulder and wrist problems.
Wu returned from his troubled spell to make history in 2023. He won his first ATP Tour title at the Dallas Open, defeating John Isner in the final. Wu became the first Chinese player in the Open Era to win an ATP title on the ATP Tour.
Daniil Medvedev beat Wu Yibing in their only previous match
Back in 2022, Daniil Medvedev was world number one and the defending US Open champion.
The Russian won his opening two rounds before matching up against his 2025 Washington Open opponent, Wu Yibing.
Medvedev won the match comfortably 6-4 6-2 6-2.
However, considering the poor form of Medvedev in 2025 and the recent high level of performance from Wu, an upset could be on the cards in DC.
