Things to be forgiven for.

Bu completely cracked under the pressure last year during the tournaments in China. He owes his supporters a comeback, but he also needs to get his personal revenge against Zheng, who just beat him.

Bu admitted that he gave in under the stress last year and put huge pressure on himself, which he wasn’t able to contain. On the one hand, you could say it might be the same thing this year, but I think that’s also part of the learning process. He will have learned from his mistakes and should play his tournaments with much more looseness and perspective on the situation. He knows how *not* to handle them this time and, in any case, it can’t really be worse than last year, so a more relaxed approach is expected. He hasn’t played any Davis Cup matches and will have prepared for this tournament properly as well. That’s something that reassures me for him, as does the fact that he’s facing a player he knows very well again, Zheng. For those who didn’t see their match at the US Open, it was a good level before Bu collapsed physically and Zheng was carried by a fired‑up crowd. The American handled that match perfectly, but I still didn’t find him dominant, as is very often the case.

He then went on to play a Challenger in the United States and lost in the semi-finals on September 19. Beware of the quick turnaround and the change of conditions, because there’s a huge trip involved and he’s a player who doesn’t really have much experience, strictly speaking. Seeing him play very well at home or in the big tournaments he knows because he played them as a junior is one thing, but seeing him go on slightly darker tours where you need experience and reputation to get through, that’s different. The match itself is totally different too: he went from the US Open at home, carried by friends and an atmosphere worthy of a college match, to a tournament in China where the support will be entirely for the local player Bu, who will be eager to make up for things.