#NextGen star Karen Khachanov powered into the second round of the Chengdu Open on Tuesday as he ousted seventh seed Joao Sousa 7-6(3), 6-3.

The 20-year-old Russian advanced in 77 minutes, firing seven aces and converting two of his three break points. “It’s a very good match for me,” said Khachanov. “I’m very happy with my performance. I like the court, I like the crowd, so I was enjoying playing the match.”

Khachanov reached a career-high No. 81 in the Emirates ATP Rankings earlier this month after qualifying at the US Open and progressing to the second round (l. to Nishikori). The right-hander also reached his second ATP World Tour quarter-final in July in Kitzbuhel.

Khachanov goes on to face Adrian Mannarino, who battled past qualifier Denis Kudla 6-4, 6-7(2), 6-4 in two hours and 33 minutes.

Kevin Anderson set a second-round clash with No. 2 seed Nick Kyrgios as he dismissed another Australian, Jordan Thompson, 6-2, 6-4. The South African will face Kyrgios for the first time as he bids to reach his fifth ATP World Tour quarter-final of the season.

Meanwhile, third seed Grigor Dimitrov will open his Chengdu campaign against Dusan Lajovic after the Serbian rallied from a set down to beat Federico Delbonis 1-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Three matches were suspended because of rain: Marcos Baghdatis and Pablo Carreno Busta were tied at 5-5 in the third set; sixth seed Viktor Troicki was leading Norwegian wild card Casper Ruud 6-3, 3-2; and fifth seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas was ahead of German qualifier Michael Berrer 6-4, 5-7, 3-1.

A host of ATP World Tour stars turned selfie-taking spectators on Tuesday, taking part in an excursion to the famous Giant Panda Breeding and Research Base in Chengdu.

Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, South African Kevin Anderson, Argentinian Diego Schwartzman and the New Zealand-American doubles pairing of Artem Sitak and Nicholas Monroe were fortunate to visit on a day when the weather was co-operating, allowing the baby pandas to also be brought out of their rooms. Third seed Dimitrov was taken by the cute black and white baby mammals.

“It’s amazing to see all those little ones and some of the big ones,” Dimitrov said. “It’s pretty rare to do that in the middle of a tournament, but we all enjoyed it a lot.”

Chengdu has long been famous for its pandas, and Panda Bay (as the research base is known) was set up in 1987 in an effort to conserve the population of China’s native mammal.

Jiri Vesely has made a winning return to the ATP World Tour in his first match since the US Open. The eighth seed saw off Pablo Andujar 6-2, 7-6(8) to advance to the second round of the Shenzhen Open.

The 23-year-old Czech lefty registered 13 aces, losing just six points on his first serve and breaking three times to secure his second FedEx ATP Head2Head victory over the Spaniard. It was a welcome return after he was forced to withdraw with a left arm injury ahead of his second-round clash with top seed Novak Djokovic at Flushing Meadows.

It had been an even longer spell between ATP World Tour matches for the 30-year-old Andujar, who was playing his first since undergoing right elbow surgery in March. He entered on a protected Emirates ATP Ranking having fallen to No.436 from a career-high of No.32 last July. Vesely next meets the winner of Spaniard Inigo Cervantes and Japanese wild card Akira Santillan.

American qualifier Ryan Harrison joined Vesely in the second round. The 24 year old defeated last year’s Shenzhen Open runner-up Guillermo Garciz-Lopez 7-5, 6-4. Harrison’s win sets up a meeting with fourth-seeded Bernard Tomic. The Australian has won the pair’s only prior FedEx Head2Head encounter four years ago at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Cincinnati.

Tunisian Malek Jaziri booked a second round clash with No.2 seed David Goffin. Jaziri hit eight aces and broke three times on his way past Frenchman Stephane Robert 6-3, 7-6(5).

After an outstanding 2016 season, #NextGen star Frances Tiafoe is looking to put the final pieces of the puzzle together to crack the Top 100 of the Emirates ATP Rankings by the end of the year.

The 18 year old American has climbed more than 50 spots to reach his current career-high Emirates ATP Ranking of No. 121. He won his first ATP Challenger Tour title last month at the $100,000 event in Granby, Canada, and finished runner-up at three Challenger events on U.S. soil. With the exception of Granby, all five of his other Challenger finals have come in the U.S.

Tiafoe is hoping for a repeat moment at this week’s $100,000 Challenger in Tiburon, California, where he is the fourth seed. He plays fellow American Alexander Sarkissian in the opening round.

“I don’t know why, but I always find myself playing so well in the U.S. It’s almost too easy here,” said Tiafoe. “You know everyone who works at the tournaments and know your way around. I feel more comfortable at them and that’s when I play my best tennis. But I’m also trying to change that and start to feel more comfortable playing abroad as well.”

The American has emerged as a promising standout on the ATP Challenger Tour, but introduced himself to a broader audience at this year’s US Open. Competing against John Isner in the opening round, he held two match points before falling in a fifth-set tie-break in front of a packed house on the Grandstand.

“It was an atmosphere I’ve never experienced before. The crowd was going absolutely wild,” said Tiafoe. “To be able to play like that on a court like that against one of the best Americans gave me a tremendous amount of confidence. I just want to run with that now.”

But while Tiafoe played without pressure last season, he’s now being touted as one of the favorites to win at every Challenger he plays. Although he admitted it took getting used to initially, being a top contender has quickly become a natural role for someone who thrives on playing big matches in front of packed crowds.

“It’s a different feeling. This summer was the first time I’ve been seeded in Challengers and now I’m supposed to be going deep every time I play,” said Tiafoe. “But at the same time, that means I’m playing well and getting closer to the Top 100. This is what I want.”

Russian #NextGen star Karen Khachanov and 17-year-old Norwegian Casper Ruud, in China for the Chengdu Open, visited one of Chengdu’s unique attractions, Kuanzhai Alley, which translates as Wide and Narrow Alley, on Monday.

Located in one of the oldest parts of Chengdu, dating back to the Qing Dynasty, Kuanzhai Alley offers a unique glimpse into the architecture at the time. The players tried some of the city’s most popular snacks, while being entertained by a traditionally attired Sichuan opera performer.

“The culture is here is very unusual and it is very interesting to see,” said Khachanov. “I’m very excited to be here. I like it.”

“The architecture here is very nice and very different from anywhere else,” said Ruud. “It’s nice.”

Tea For Two In Chengdu

On Sunday morning, ATP World Tour players Kevin Anderson of South Africa and John Millman of Australia also took time to experience the Chengdu culture. The two visited the historic Wenshu Monastery, located in the centre of Chengdu city.

They received a crash course in the art of “Chang Zui Hu”, the ancient Chengdu practice of pouring tea out through an extremely long spout. Combining martial arts with technical ability, this unique practice was created as a form of entertainment in local tea houses many hundreds of years ago. “It was really cool,” said Anderson. “Just the whole architecture and this whole place is incredible.”

“I enjoyed it. It’s pretty special to be able to experience the cultures of such an old country like China,” said Millman. “It was a lot of fun. It was something different. I’m always up for new, exciting experiences.”

This is the first year of the Chengdu Open, an ATP World Tour 250 level tournament.

Former World No. 10 Juan Monaco required 66 minutes to beat qualifier Hiroki Moriya 6-1, 6-2 on Monday at the Chengdu Open. Monaco will next face fourth seed Feliciano Lopez, whom he beat in the Houston semi-finals en route to his ninth ATP World Tour title (d. Sock) in April.

Diego Schwartzman, who lifted his first ATP World Tour trophy in Istanbul (d. Dimitrov) earlier this year, knocked out Rajeev Ram 6-4, 7-5 in 87 minutes. He awaits the winner of eighth seed Paolo Lorenzi or John Millman. “The first match is always tough for the players,” said Schwarztman. “I feel great, so it’s good to win… I try to improve every week.”

In doubles, fourth seeds Pablo Carreno Busta and Mariusz Fyrstenberg defeated wild card Yan Bai and Di Wu 6-2, 6-7(2), 10-6 in 89 minutes, while Nicholas Monroe and Artem Sitak lost just seven of their first service points in a 6-3, 1-6, 10-4 victory over Federico Delbonis and Paolo Lorenzi in 63 minutes.

Fabio Fognini recorded his 20th match win of the season on Monday when the seventh seed defeated Dudi Sela 6-4, 6-1 in 78 minutes on his debut at the Shenzhen Open. He’ll next face qualifier Mischa Zverev who struck eight aces and won 96 per cent of his first service points to oust wild card Zhe Li. Zverev leads Fognini 2-1 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series.

Andrew Whittington saved four match points in the second set tie-break to force a third set and beat fellow qualifier Luca Vanni 2-6, 7-6(10), 6-2 in two hours and 20 minutes. The 23-year-old Australian, making his ATP World Tour main draw debut, will next face third seed Richard Gasquet in the second round.

In doubles, Jonathan Erlich and Santiago Gonzalez saved one match point at 8/9 in the Match Tie-break to knock out Lukas Rosol and Jiri Vesely 6-7(5), 6-2, 11-9 in one hour and 46 minutes.

DAY 2 PREVIEW: The No. 1 Chinese player in the Emirates ATP Rankings comes home on Tuesday for his first ATP World Tour match of 2016. Ze Zhang is 4-0 on tour this season, with all four wins coming in Davis Cup Group I. The 26 year old from Nanjing is in a unique position against Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia, whom he defeated at a Challenger event in Chengdu last month. For just the second time in 20 ATP and Grand Slam main draw matches, Zhang is ranked higher than his opponent. Tipsarevic, a former World No. 8, is 45 spots below Zhang at No. 224 after missing seven of the past 12 months with foot and knee injuries.

Also in first-round action on Centre Court is No. 6 seed Benoit Paire. The Frenchman enjoyed a breakout season in 2015, winning five titles in eight finals across the ATP World Tour, ATP Challenger Tour and ITF Futures Circuit. Playing exclusively at tour-level events in 2016, Paire has yet to reach a final and fallen from a career-high No. 18 on 11 January to No. 38 this week. Paire has suffered five losses this season to players ranked outside of the Top 100. His opponent on Tuesday is 103rd-ranked Nikoloz Basilashvili.

Play begins on Centre Court with 2015 Shenzhen Open runner-up Guillermo Garcia-Lopez taking on American qualifier Ryan Harrison. Garcia-Lopez has not reached a singles final since falling to Tomas Berdych here last year, but he did play in back-to-back doubles finals earlier this season. He won the Winston-Salem Open title with Henri Kontinen and fell in the US Open final with fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta.

Among the players competing on the outer courts are Pablo Andujar of Spain and 19 year old Akira Santillan of Japan. Andujar is appearing at his first ATP event since undergoing right elbow surgery on 17 March, while Santillan will be playing the second tour-level match of his career. The wild card fell to Jan-Lennard Struff at Kitzbuhel on 19 July. In doubles, No. 1 seeds Treat Huey and Max Mirnyi continue their quest for qualification at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals against Fognini and Robert Lindstedt.