MIAMI, USA — Amid feel-good breakthroughs and big-name upsets at the Miami Open presented by Itau, 20-year-old Coleman Wong of Hong Kong has grabbed all the headlines.
Ranked No. 182 in the world, the wild card clinched the biggest win of his career to date with a 7-6 (3), 2-6, 7-6 (5) second-round stunner over No. 13 seed Ben Shelton. One of the pre-tournament favorites, Shelton joins the likes of Carlos Alcaraz, Jack Draper, Holger Rune and more top seeds to be shocked in the early rounds.
“I’m so scared to see my phone at the moment!” Wong later told press, grinning and still taking it all in long after the match concluded.
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Playing on a rocking Court 1 with an atmosphere Wong described as “my team against the whole of Florida,” the Hong Konger edged through tiebreaks in the first and third set. He had to weather 14 aces from Shelton—who won 81% of his first-serve points and hit 35 winners—to claim victory after a grueling two-hour and 17 minutes. Wong fell to the court in celebration, and covered his face as the tears flowed after Shelton’s final lefty forehand struck the net.
“When I started playing tennis when I was five, that’s what I was dreaming about,” Wong said. “Like, to play in the Miami Open, or something like this tournament, against a top player.
“I’m really lucky that I had the chance to play through the wild card and then play against Ben. It was very emotional.”
