It was a semifinal full of twists on the outdoor hard courts in Cincinnati: Yunchaokete Wu defeated Mackenzie McDonald 7:6, 1:6, 7:5 to advance to the final of the ATP Masters 1000 tournament. The Chinese player showed nerves of steel for long stretches — particularly in the decisive moments of the first and third sets.
Tiebreak settles the opening set
The first set developed into an evenly matched contest in which neither player managed to apply serious pressure on the other's serve. The set ultimately went to a tiebreak, which Wu edged 9:7. McDonald, who dominated on his own serve with nine aces and won 88 percent of his service games, could not convert his strong serving into a set win when it mattered most — the opener went to Wu.
McDonald levels — Wu responds in the deciding set
In the second set, McDonald produced his best tennis. The American crowd favourite converted his break points ruthlessly, dropped just one game, and took the set convincingly 6:1. His superiority was clear: McDonald won 79 percent of points on first serve and demonstrated why he is one of the most dangerous players on hard courts.
Wu, however, refused to be rattled. The third set again developed into a tight affair before Wu made the decisive move at 5:5. He converted his break points at the most critical junctures and closed out the set 7:5. McDonald had saved two match points in the deciding set, but ultimately could not force his way into the final.
Statistics reflect a close contest
The numbers underlined just how tight the match was: Wu won 49 percent of all points to McDonald's 51 percent — yet it was Wu who emerged victorious. Wu struck 33 winners but also committed 56 unforced errors. McDonald produced significantly fewer outright winners with 18, while showing greater discipline with 40 unforced errors. Both players were closely matched when it came to saving break points: Wu saved 73 percent, McDonald 71 percent. Break point conversion was modest on both sides — Wu converted 29 percent of his chances, McDonald 27 percent.
With the victory, Yunchaokete Wu advanced to the final of the Cincinnati Open — one of the most important Masters 1000 tournaments of the North American hard-court summer, which serves as a direct dress rehearsal for the US Open. For McDonald, a strong run ended one step short of the finish line.
