China completed a first-round sweep at the US Open on Tuesday, with Wu Yibing's victory making history in the men's draw and Wang Yafan springing one of the day's biggest shocks on the women's side.

Wu Yibing of China hits a return during the men's singles first round match against Dusan Lajovic of Serbia at the 2023 US Open tennis championships in New York, the United States, Aug. 29, 2023. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

Wu defeated Serbia's Dusan Lajovic 3-6, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 to join compatriot Zhang Zhizhen in the second round, marking the first time in the Open era that two Chinese men have reached that stage of the same Grand Slam tournament.

The 23-year-old Wu admitted it was an exciting time for Chinese tennis and hopes he and Zhang can go deeper in the draw.

"I think it's really good, and I think it's gonna be like this more and more. Let's win more rounds together and maybe one day we can meet each other in the final, why not?" said world No 86 Wu, who will next take on 13th seed Alex de Minaur of Australia.

Wu was appreciative of an enthusiastic contingent of Chinese fans at Court 4, who cheered his every point during the hard-fought win over Lajovic, ranked 52nd in the world.

"I think I got the same support here last year because there are so many Chinese fans here... I don't think just even for me. In general, Chinese players have more support here in New York than other cities in the United States, so of course I feel happy," he said.

Qualifier Wang stunned seventh seed Caroline Garcia 6-4, 6-1, while Zheng Qinwen completed China's perfect first-round campaign by easing past Argentina's Nadia Podoroska 6-1, 6-0. All four Chinese players in action on Monday won, with Tuesday's triumphs ensuring China has seven players in round two.

Wang's victory over last year's semifinalist Garcia was undoubtedly the most surprising of Tuesday's Chinese wins, although the 29-yearold arrived in New York on the back of a WTA 125 tournament victory at Stanford, California.

"I believe in myself and have good confidence this week. I didn't play last year, and when I returned I had more focus on my tennis. When I came back I wasn't sure if I could win, but week by week I began to feel more confident," said Wang, who came through three qualifying matches at Flushing Meadows.

"I think the difference is before I would be thinking too much — 'why did I lose this match and what happened?' — but now if I lose it's the same life, and if I win it's the same life. I try to enjoy tennis, and not have too much pressure, because tennis is not your entire life."

Wang is easing herself back into life on the pro circuit after a combination of getting married, dealing with injuries and the pandemic reduced her time on the court over the past few years.

"It's the first time in four years that I've been in the US Open main draw, so lose or win I thought just enjoy it and try to play my best tennis here," she said.

Wang was ranked No 696 in March this year, but a nine-match winning streak prior to Tuesday's victory has propelled the former top-50 player up to No 114. She reckons taking time away from tennis at her home in Guangdong province has helped her game.

"I used to think 100 percent about tennis. Over the last few years I didn't play as much. Because of COVID it was difficult to travel and my husband couldn't come with me. If I had played, maybe I would stay abroad for a year and we'd miss each other, and I also had a little injury. I didn't practice too much at home, it was more relaxing and was better for my tennis," said Wang, who also credits a tweak in her service technique for her upturn in results.

With all seven Chinese through to round two, Wang reckons her compatriots are feeding off each other's positivity in what has been a season packed full of breakthroughs for Chinese tennis.

"Sometimes one player plays good and another one thinks maybe I can do it too, and when your friend wins a match you also get some confidence," she said.

Tuesday's win should propel Wang into the top 100, or at least very close to it, and she hopes to continue inching up the rankings in order to secure a main-draw place at next year's Australian Open.

She next faces world No 61 Katie Boulter of Britain as she looks to make it past the second round at a Grand Slam for the first time.

Chinese women's No 1 Zheng, the 23rd seed in New York, has every reason to feel confident about her second-round chances after conceding just one game in her blowout win over Podoroska.

"I feel pretty good and had the right intensity with my shots. I had a great return game, I broke her really fast and I kept going and stayed focused from the beginning until the end. I'm pretty happy with my performance today," said Zheng, who also gave the tournament's new ball the thumbs-up.

"I like the ball this year. I heard that they changed it to the men's ball and I feel there is more quality and you can really put your power behind it. Before the girls' ball would really fly, that's why you would see the girls have fewer rallies than the men."

The 20-year-old will next take on Estonia's Kaia Kanepi, who is ranked 133rd in the world, in a clash of two power hitters.

"It will be an interesting match. It's normal for a player to have power (nowadays), there is a lot of competition here. So I'll just play my game and we will see," said Zheng.

Alcaraz advances

Carlos Alcaraz said retaining the US Open title was not on his mind as he began the defense of his crown on Tuesday with a swift win over injured German opponent Dominik Koepfer.

The world No 1 moved into the second round when the 75th-ranked Koepfer retired because of an ankle injury with the Spaniard leading 6-2, 3-2 under the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

"That's not the best way to get through into another round," said Alcaraz, "but I have to say on my side I was playing great."

"I started pretty well. Really focused. Honestly, I didn't expect to play such a great level at the beginning, the first round, here in the US Open.

"I am very, very happy with the level, even if Domi had to retire. Have to see myself and hopefully to keep that level into the next round."

Alcaraz entered a Grand Slam as the defending champion for the first time, but the 20-year-old tried to downplay the significance of being the player to beat in New York.

"I was excited to play my first round here in US Open. I mean, it was great to step on court again in the Arthur Ashe after such a great run last year. I was excited to come back," he said.

"I'm not thinking about defending the title. I was not thinking about I was the champion last year. I just focus on playing my best level, to recover the level that I played last year, try to do the same things that I did last year.

"That's the only thing that I'm thinking right now. I try to be apart from all the pressure people put on me about (being) the defending champion."

Two-time champion Venus Williams suffered her most lopsided loss in 24 appearances at the tournament with a 6-1, 6-1 defeat to Belgian qualifier Greet Minnen.

"In 1997, Venus already played a final here and I was just born, so for me it was incredible to play a legend like her," the 26-year-old Minnen said. "I have huge respect for her."

Williams' younger sister Serena retired after last year's US Open with 23 major titles to her name. Asked when she might hang up her racket, Venus was noncommittal.

"I wouldn't tell you," she said with a smile. "I don't know. I don't know why you're asking."

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