The staying power of Hyeon Chung
After more than two years of injury-related absence from competitive tennis, Hyeon Chung made his comeback last fall, albeit only in doubles. Almost half a year later, the South Korean will start his next individual assignment at the home challenger in Seoul this week.
by Dietmar Kaspar
last edit:
Apr 25, 2023, 02:32 pm
Hyeon Chung already had a promising career at a young age. With a total of four titles on the ITF Junior Tour in 2012, the South Korean played his way up to 7th place in the junior world rankings. The transition to the men's team initially turned out to be a success story. With four titles on the ATP Challenger Tour in 2015, he climbed up to the top 50 in the ATP ranking before an ankle injury showed him the downside of a professional career for the first time the following year.
Victory at the Next Gen ATP Finals
Unfazed by the injury-related setback, the 26-year-old fought his way back up to his career high by the end of the 2017 season and set a huge exclamation mark in Turin. At the Next Gen ATP Finals, which were held for the first time, he secured the crown with victories against Denis Shapovalov and Daniil Medvedev after beating Andrey Rublev in the final.
Dream run at the Australian Open
The Australian Open 2018 will go down in the annals of Chung as an absolute highlight, whose trademark white sports glasses gained worldwide fame. After he was able to defeat the top players Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic in a row, dramatic scenes took place in the semifinals against Roger Federer. Due to a huge blister on his foot, the South Korean Davis Cup player had to retire when the score was 1-6, 2-5. After reaching his career high of 19th in the world rankings, he missed several months later in the season due to a leg injury and the following year his back forced him to take an extended break for the first time.
Failed comeback attempt
In the 2020 season, Chung started the tour again despite persistent back problems, but the hoped-for success did not materialize. After four opening defeats in Challenger tournaments, he tried it again on the big stage. In qualifying for the French Open, which was only held in autumn due to Corona, he celebrated his first success of the season by beating the Frenchman Baptiste Crepatte. His subsequent defeat by Argentina's Renzo Olivo would remain his last singles appearance on the tour to date.
New attempt at home
After necessitating back surgery, it was more than two years before his name was listed in a tournament draw again. At the ATP 250 tournament in his hometown of Seoul last fall, he celebrated his comeback in the doubles competition alongside his compatriot Soonwoo Kwon, who has already won two ATP singles titles. The comeback looked promising with two wins and reaching the semifinals, but it should be another six months before Chung makes another attempt this week with a wildcard. At the Category 125 Challenger tournament in Seoul, the first round in singles with third-placed Australian Jordan Thompson is no easy task, but the result should be of secondary importance for him after such a long history of injuries.