For Australian qualifier Li Tu, making his US Open debut couldn’t come under better—or more intimidating–circumstances. Many players dream of having the opportunity to showcase their talent to the world on tennis’ biggest stage, and Tu’s chance comes in the form of a night match in Arthur Ashe Stadium against none other than former champion and former No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday.
This luck of the draw puts Tu in a position to face his first Top 50 opponent, one who already has two Grand Slam titles and an Olympic silver medal to his name so far this season. But don’t be quick to count the world No. 186 out of it yet. His game is peaking at just the right time late in the summer, and he just might have what it takes to make things interesting against Alcaraz.
Here’s what you need to know about this 2024 US Open newcomer.
This won’t be the first top-ranked Spaniard Tu has faced at a Grand Slam.
The 2024 US Open is actually Tu’s second career appearance at a major, his first coming with a wild card entry into the 2021 Australian Open, his home Slam. There, Tu stole the first set off then-No. 65 Feliciano Lopez before falling in four competitive sets, two of which went to a tiebreak.
Against Alcaraz, Tu enters the contest armed with some of his best tennis. He saved two match points in qualifying to reach the main draw here, and he reached the final of a Challenger tournament in Lexington a month ago, dropping only one set en route.
Tu walked away from professional tennis for six years before rekindling his love for the game.
Ten years ago, at age 18, Tu quit tennis after losing his passion for the game. Growing up in Australia, he was a top junior player and often went toe-to-toe with guys like Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios. But he struggled with motivation and decided to hang up his racquet.
“I loved winning but I didn’t actually love the grind, training, setting a schedule, and falling in love with the process,” he said. “I wasn’t that motivated to train and to be the best I could be.”
During his time away, he obtained a bachelor’s degree from Adelaide University before returning to tennis, but this time with his own coaching business working with Australian juniors. Tu admits that working on the other end of the spectrum as a coach, emphasizing to those young players the importance of enjoying the highs and lows of the process, changed his attitude toward his own game, and he began competing again in 2020.
“Having a perspective from the sidelines really helped my comeback, and getting that extra perspective really made me understand things from a whole other level,” Tu said.
Two years ago, Tu experienced a family heartbreak that he says continues to inspire his play.
Two years after he returned to the professional game, Tu’s mother, who had an extensive battle with lung cancer, began to decline in health in 2022. He took a brief break from the game to stay home with his family during that difficult time, when his mother passed away in September of that year.
Shortly after her funeral, Tu played a Challenger event in Seoul, Korea, and won the title, dedicating it to his late mother. Since then, Tu said he thinks of her often during his matches, and he continues to feel her presence every step of the way as he competes.
“She's still with me. I truly believe that, and I just want to make my parents proud,” Tu said. “I know no matter what I do, they would be. But I just want to make them proud.”
