China’s no.1 Yunchaokete Bu beats Peter Buldorini in straight sets before Yi Zhou battles past Michael Agwi in a thrilling three-setter
Stephen Higgins
As fans left the Sport Ireland National Indoor Arena on Saturday evening, they had been treated to some scintillating tennis as Ireland competed fiercely before falling to a 2-0 deficit on day one.
China’s no.1 player, Yunchaokete Bu, took the opening singles 6-4 6-1 over a resilient Peter Buldorini. Then, Yi Zhao broke Irish hearts with an enthralling 6-1 6-7 6-0 victory over the Irish no.1 Michael Agwi.
Playing in his debut for Ireland, Buldorini had a promising start in the opening match and held serve confidently. In the early stages Bu, who ranked as high as no.64 in April, seemed to play within himself. However, that pedigree soon came to the fore as he neutralised Buldorini’s serve.
In the third game the Chinese struck, firing a backhand past a stranded Buldorini at net to break and take a 2-1 lead. While Bu consolidated the break, he was unable to run away with the set.
Buldorini showed impressive application and speed to stay competitive, particularly as the Chinese struggled with an errant forehand. While Bu was generally in control of proceedings, the Irishman held his own and provided solidity in rallies.
The Irish crowd bonded with this new recruit and the 21-year-old gained breakpoint chances in the eighth game at 3-4 down. However, the visitor raised his game when it mattered and closed that brief opening with a fierce forehand. After Buldorini held once more, Bu finally snatched the set on his own delivery.
While Bu initially struggled to find timing on his forehand, that frailty quickly dissolved in set two.
The Chinese no.1 immediately broke Buldorini with some scintillating ground strokes and found his groove. Bu raced away to a 4-0 lead as Buldorini battled bravely, but could not live with the overwhelming power of an opponent who had already beaten Stefanos Tsitsipas, David Goffin and Fabio Fognini in 2025.
The Irishman thankfully managed to prevent a bagel, but Bu’s constant pressure from the baseline, allied with some judicious moves to the net, eventually broke the Irishman’s resistance. A forced error off Buldorini’s racquet gave Bu the 6-4 6-1 victory and China’s first point.
All eyes then turned to the second singles. Given the close proximity between Michael Agwi’s highest ranking (no.407), and Yi Zhou’s current standing at no.301, the second singles rubber promised to be competitive.
At the offset, that did not come to pass as a lightning start from the 20-year-old visitor overwhelmed Agwi. Zhou broke the Irishman in the second game after some outstanding defensive resistance and a neat volley to finish. Agwi did land some punches in the opening set, but Zhou showed his class in all areas of the game to hold the advantage.
The former junior world no.3 proved to be a nightmare on return for most of the evening and he duly broke Agwi again to take a 5-1 lead. The visitor, composed and sharp, then closed out the last service game.
While the situation looked stark, as fans who have witnessed Agwi against Austria or in the 2025 Irish Open will know, this 22-year-old has a very high ceiling. While he was short of that in the first set against Zhou, the Irish no.1 certainly brought the goods in the second.
After starting with a less than ideal break of serve, Agwi encouraged the crowd into the contest. The exchange of energy worked a treat as he found another level to his tennis.
After threatening Zhou’s serve in the second game, Agwi held his own delivery and created a platform in the set. What followed was a fabulous run of games where both competitors found quality shots from all over the court.
Agwi continued to threaten the visitor’s service while gaining more authority on his own. Then, in the sixth game, the Irishman showed great concentration to prolong a rally until Zhou’s shot wilted into the net. Finally, a break!
From 3-3, Agwi maintained his vigour and energy as the crowd got raucous. There was even a point where he fell over during the middle of a rally, yet still won the point. Excellent exchanges and shotmaking peppered the remaining games before the set reached a crescendo: a tie-break.
Roared on throughout, Agwi found his best level of the day when it mattered most. With brave second serves and brilliant depth on return, Agwi’s clean hitting proved decisive as he surged to a 7-1 scoreline to force a decider.
Unfortunately for Irish fans, rather than panic at the change of affairs, Zhou showcased a maturity beyond his years. When the final set began, the 20-year-old’s game returned to the precision of set one, and his flexibility in defensive positions proved to be a nightmare for Agwi.
After Zhou held serve to open, the Irishman was then broken due to a combination of errors and one astonishing return winner from the Chinese. From there, the visitor surged.
Zhou coupled strong serving with magnificent depth on return and in truth, Agwi couldn’t cope with the outstanding level from his opponent. The 20-year-old did not let up and completed the match with a final set bagel.
With the first day of play complete, Ireland will now go into Sunday needing a victory in the doubles to keep the tie alive. Conor Gannon and David O’Hare will need to spring an upset to make the reverse singles a factor and extend the contest.
