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As the youngest man in the 2023 Rolex Shanghai Masters main draw, Shang Juncheng will face a new challenge when he takes to the court for his first-round which is also the feature night match on Thursday.
But it's also a significant opportunity for the 18-year-old Chinese player, who is showing that youth is no barrier to success in a headline-grabbing year.
Professional milestones have come quickly for the Beijing-born Shang, who is fondly known to many as "Jerry".
At the Australian Open in January, the then-17-year-old won through qualifying to become the youngest main-draw contender. He subsequently defeated Oscar Otte, making him the first Chinese male player to win a main-draw match at the tournament in the Open era.
Shang also qualified for Roland Garros and climbed to a career-high world No.149 singles ranking in July.
It provides a solid foundation as Shang, a wildcard recipient and one of four Chinese men competing in the singles draw, prepares to meet Japan's Yosuke Watanuki in his Rolex Shanghai Masters debut.
Like many matches for the talented left-hander this season, it will be a first career meeting between the pair.
At age 25 and ranked world No.77, Watanuki is vastly more experienced than the 160th-ranked Shang, who is contesting the China swing for the first time.
While he admitted the attention of a growing Chinese fan base was initially overwhelming at his first tournament in Zhuhai, the teenager is now relishing the local support.
"(I was) a little bit nervous in the beginning but obviously it's great support and more of a push for me to keep going forward," Shang said. "I'm glad that they can support me during the matches, also off the court."
Alongside that support, Shang also has sound guidance from his athletic family; his father, Yi, was a professional football player, while his mother, Na, was a world champion table tennis player.
Shang, who took up the sport at his parents' suggestion as a five-year-old, started training overseas at age 13 and is now based at the renowned IMG Academy in Florida, USA.
He's not the only player aiming to build on a career-best season in Asia's only ATP Masters 1000 tournament.
One of the most exciting young players in world tennis is French teenager Arthur Fils. The 19-year-old is at a career high of 44 and earlier in the year won his maiden career title in Lyon. He has an explosive left-handed game and is featured in the second center court match against Pavel Kotov.
Among the 11 Australian players - making that nation the most represented, alongside America and France, which also have eleven singles competitors each at the tournament - there are many who have climbed to new career highs this year.
This includes five of the six Australians in first-round action at the Qi Zhong Stadium on Thursday; each of those men is making a main-draw debut at the tournament, with confidence high after recent rankings peaks.
Alexei Popyrin, who faces Italy's Matteo Arnaldi, climbed to world No.40 soon after winning a second career ATP title in Umag in August. The 24-year-old Australian currently sits at 45.
Aleksandar Vukic enters a first career meeting with Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena as a top-50 player, after peaking at world No.48 in August. Chris O'Connell faces Botic van de Zandschulp with a peak world No.53 ranking. He holds a winning record against his Dutch opponent, winning the only match they contested at Marrakech earlier this year.
Following his fourth-round appearance at the US Open, Rinky Hijikata has charged into the world's top 100. The world No.76 Australian will take on world No.37 Serbian Laslo Djere in the pair's first match on tour.
The 20-year-old Philip Sekulic who is at a career high 292, is one of four Australian qualifiers in Shanghai and takes on Italian Lorenzo Sonego.
Jordan Thompson is the sixth Australian player in action on Thursday, with the world No.62 Sydneysider facing French qualifier Terence Atmane.
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