[Singles Qualifying Round 2]
○ Sho Shimabukuro (JPN)  6-4, 6-3  ● J. Cerundolo (ARG) [4]

■Sho Shimabukuro stuck to his aggressive game plan. Although some of his powerful shots went long, he continued to hit his forehand without worrying about making mistakes, stepping into the net whenever he saw an opportunity. On set point in the first set, he hit a forehand winner down the line, and on match point in the second set, he forced a weak return with a 209 km/h serve and finished the match with a forehand drive volley. "My opponent was a good defensive player, so I thought the key would be how I could expand the range of my attacking options. There were times I overhit, but that added pressure on him," Shimabukuro reflected. "I was able to play my own style of tennis right to the end. This match really boosted my confidence," he said, his voice filled with excitement.

■In the first half of this year, Shimabukuro struggled, losing in the first round of five consecutive tournaments. "My tennis itself wasn't bad, but I just couldn't turn it into wins. I went through a period where I was mentally in a negative state," he admitted. Things began to turn around in April, when he started receiving coaching from former Davis Cup captain Satoshi Iwabuchi. "We trained together in Japan, and when I was traveling, he gave me advice by phone and email," Shimabukuro said. By shifting his mindset to focus on "improving my level of tennis" rather than fixating on winning and losing, the results started to follow. He won a Challenger tournament last month, which he said "led directly to this successful run in the qualifiers."

■Currently ranked No.271 in the world, Shimabukuro had broken through the qualifiers to reach the main draws of both Wimbledon and the US Open in 2023, climbing as high as No.135 in the rankings. "Back then, I was riding a wave of momentum but in terms of the level of my tennis, I'm definitely playing better now. I've become a stronger player," he said. "To aim for the top 100, it’s essential to gain experience and win matches on the ATP stage, like at the Kinoshita Group Japan Open," he added. "The first round will , no doubt, be a tough match, but I want to believe in my game and give it everything I've got."

(Japan Tennis Association)