The Zhuhai Championships will get underway on September 20 and run until the 26th. Here is our preview of the ATP 250 event held at the Hengqin International Tennis Center in Zhuhai, China. 

Karen Khachanov, Cameron Norrie, Jan-Lennard Struff, and Sebastian Korda will be the top four seeds at the tournament. This is the first time in four years that the ATP Tour has gone to China after COVID-19 restrictions made it difficult to compete in the country for a while.

World No. 3 Daniil Medvedev was originally set to take part in the event as the top seed, but his withdrawal meant that the top spot went to World No. 15 Khachanov instead.

All of the top four seeds have faced difficulties in recent months and will be hoping to take a positive turn here with a deep run. Khachanov was forced to miss Wimbledon before pulling out of the ATP Masters 1000 events in Toronto and Cincinnati over the summer. The Russian then lost his opening match in straight sets at the US Open against home player Michael Mmoh.

Second seed Norrie has also experienced a lot of early exits over the summer. At the SW19, he lost to Christopher Eubanks in the second round, before failing to make it past his first round at the Los Cabos Open, the Canadian Open, or the Cincinnati Masters. However, things may be improving for the Brit after he made it to the third round at the Grand Slam in New York.

Meanwhile, Jan-Lennard Struff will be returning to action for the first time since June after injuries forced him to miss Wimbledon and the US Open. He last played at the Halle Open where he lost to Alexander Bublik in the second round.

Fourth seed Sebastian Korda, who is the World No. 33, had a solid run at the Winston-Salem Open, making it to the semi-finals. However, he was forced to withdraw due to injury. He then locked horns with Márton Fucsovics in the first round of the US Open but lost in five sets.

Khachanov is likely to face Diego Schwartzman in his first-round match. The Argentinian player currently leads their head-to-head 3-2, although they are currently even on hard courts. If the top seed gets past this, his projected semi-final opponent is Korda. Their head-to-head is 2-2, with Khachanov having won their latest meeting at the 2023 Australian Open.

Sixth seed Mackenzie McDonald will start off his campaign for the title in the Round of 32, where he will face rising talent Juncheng Shang. The 18-year-old home player will have the support of the crowd firmly behind him, which could shift the dynamic and the energy levels between the two players.

Seventh seed Murray will take on home wild card Ye Cong Mo in his first match. If the former World No. 1 makes it through to the quarter-finals he could face his compatriot Norrie. Their head-to-head is currently even at 1-1, with Norrie having won their last meeting at the 2022 Cincinnati Open in straight sets.