Wu Yibing wins all-Chinese Challenger final in fourth outing of year

Wu Yibing returned to the ATP Challenger Tour winner’s circle in memorable fashion Sunday.

Competing in just his fourth tournament of the year, the 25-year-old ousted countryman Zhou Yi 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in the championship match of the Texas Spine and Joint Men's Championship, which was the second all-Chinese final, and first to be held outside China, in ATP Challenger Tour history.

Wu has had great success in the state of Texas, where in 2023 he won the ATP 250 in Dallas to become the first Chinese player to lift an ATP Tour trophy. In Tyler, just 90 minutes east of Dallas, Wu secured his sixth Challenger title, extending his record amongst Chinese players.

The Hangzhou native entered the week as No. 401 in the PIF ATP Rankings and after advancing through qualifying and going all the way to the title, Wu is up 121 spots to No. 280.

Zhou, 20, was aiming to become the third-youngest Chinese winner in Challenger history.

History in the making 🇨🇳

The second all-Chinese final in ATP Challenger history, and the first ever held outside of China#ATPChallenger pic.twitter.com/dfmRVmImWk

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) June 7, 2025

In other Challenger action, Otto Virtanen kickstarted his grass-court season by winning the Lexus Birmingham Open. The Finn earned a 6-4, 6-4 victory against American Colton Smith, who played his semi-final match earlier in the day due to Saturday rain.

The 23-year-old Virtanen has triumphed in all seven Challenger finals he's played, making him the fourth player in Challenger history to hold a flawless 7-0 record in title matches. Former World No. 10 Pablo Carreno Busta holds the record, having won his first 11 Challenger final appearances.

^{Otto Virtanen wins his seventh Challenger crown and first on grass. Credit: Cameron Smith/Getty Images for LTA}

Virtanen, a wild card at this week’s ATP 250 in 's-Hertogenbosch, is just the second Finnish player to win a grass-court title and first since Tuomas Ketola in 2000.

“It feels amazing playing on grass. I don't think we have a single grass court in Finland,” said Virtanen, No. 101 in the PIF ATP Rankings. “I have always liked the surface and enjoyed playing on it. It’s a classic style and it suits my game.

“It was a good match from my side and he put me in a tough situation and I had to do my best on the very important points.”

Peru’s Ignacio Buse claimed his first Challenger title at the Neckarcup 2.0 in southern Germany, where he dropped just one set all week. The 21-year-old ousted Guy Den Ouden 7-5, 7-5 in the final.

^{Ignacio Buse triumphs in Heilbronn, Germany. Credit: Elias Hoh Media/NECKARCUP}

“This is such an important win for me. I’ve worked so hard for this,” Buse said. “It was a tough week with all the weather disruptions, but I stayed calm and I’m just really happy today.”

Hugo Dellien lifted his 14th Challenger trophy and first of this season at the Unicredit Czech Open. The 31-year-old Bolivian defeated Chun-Hsin Tseng 6-3, 6-4 in the final, spoiling Tseng’s quest for back-to-back titles. Tseng last week won the Vicenza Challenger.

Prostejov belongs to @hugo_dellien 👑

The Bolivian powers past Tseng 6-3, 6-4 to lift the trophy#ATPChallenger | @czechopen pic.twitter.com/1p9b4XOqbB

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) June 7, 2025