Shanghai
Chang took a trip along Shanghai’s Memory Trail
American Visit Exhibition at Rolex Shanghai Masters and Championship Director Michael Luevano
October 5, 2025
Rolex Shanghai Master
Championship directors Michael Luevano and Michael Chang discuss the history of tennis in Shanghai’s ATP Tour.
Greg Sharko
PIF ATP top 2 Michael Chang has seen professional tennis grow in Shanghai for more than 25 years.
The International Tennis Hall of Fame member won his Division II Tour title in Shanghai on October 11, 1998, when he defeated Goran Ivanisevic in three sets. This is also the last of Chang’s 12 ATP Tour Championships in Asia. Overall, he has won 34 Tour titles, including at least one straight win in 11 consecutive years.
The first ATP Tour in Shanghai was held in 1996 and two years later, the Shanghai BA-Shi ownership group purchased the event. Current tournament director Michael Luevano and managing director Charles Humphrey Smith have played a role in tennis leadership and growth in Shanghai from the very beginning.
At the 2025 Rolex Shanghai Masters, Luevano took Zhang to visit the live “Heritage and Flag” exhibition at the Shanghai Tennis Court, located in Stand 2. The exhibition exhibits tennis in Shanghai, which starts with scratches. Men’s tennis grew from the ATP 250 Championship to the year-end Nitto ATP finals in 2002 and 2005-2008, becoming its current position on the ATP Tour calendar since 2009, one of the nine ATP Masters 1000 Championships. This is the third year of a 12-day 96-player field, making it the largest men’s championship in Asia.
Zhang said: “For me, it’s always special to return to China,” Zhang said. “But for me, I think it’s obviously from Beijing, but in Shanghai, knowing you were here at the beginning.”
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Image source: Rolex Shanghai Master
Luevano celebrates his 30 years as the tournament director, reflecting on the impact Zhang has had in Shanghai’s tennis growth. “As Michael said, because we had to build, you had to start from scratch,” Lovano said. “Michael was already a huge star at the time, two and three in the world at the time. That’s how we built partnerships, that’s how we started building and educating Chinese fans and players, inspiring players.”
Luevano added: “He was responsible for a generation of Chinese children playing tennis, not this generation, even though you were a role model, but a generation from the past. I was excited when I met Mike because it was also part of my history.”
The themed exhibition records the beginning of Shanghai tennis, which starts with Zhang’s title. The Shanghai ATP 250 has been in six versions since 1998-2004, and the Tennis Masters Cup was staged at the Shanghai International Expo Center in 2002. With the success of the Nitto ATP final in China at the end of the first year (then the Tennis Masters Cup), then ATP CEO Mark Miles said at the awards ceremony that the finale of this season will be staged again in Shanghai.
“When Mark Miles was impressed in a very large exhibition hall at the 2002 Masters Cup awards ceremony, he was sure to see the Masters 1000 at future Shanghai events and host the Tennis Masters Cup again.” “I think a statement is a catalyst for what you see, the support of the government and the vision of the government (of course, Chinese people are known for creating tennis culture, the tennis hardware we love right now.”
“Qizhong Stadium, for example, is undoubtedly an architectural wonder, and at least in 2005, it remains. It remains a unique display of the city.”
Photos of the exhibition are from Chang, Andre Agassi with former Chinese basketball star Yao Ming, as well as past Tennis Masters Cup champions such as Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, who also have four record-breaking Rolex Shanghai Masters champions. Over the years, past champions also have videos and souvenirs.
Image source: ATP Travel
Last year, the tournament was considered a standard of excellence – the highest scored ATP Masters 1000 Championship under the ATP New Player Choice Awards System – the players evaluated over 25 criteria of the matches.
“I had some conversations with different players about the feeling of playing here from the beginning,” Chang said. “Obviously, I was flying with Jannik Sinner (from Beijing) (from Beijing).
“It’s. I mean, it’s incredible. Honestly, if people actually realize there’s something for players right now. I mean, if you go and you’re just looking at the gym, and the way these guys prepare for players, food and drinks, everything is first class.
