#NextGenATP Wong: Hong Kong hero who trains at Nadal Academy

ATP Challenger Tour

Coleman Wong's introduction to tennis was almost accidental.

The Hong Kong native began playing the sport at age five when he substituted for his older sister Elana during her tennis lesson while she was sick. Little did Wong know that this moment would ignite a passion within him for tennis. Now, the 19-year-old is a rising #NextGenATP star, currently seventh in the PIF ATP Live Race to Jeddah. 

“I still remember, Court 3 at Victoria Park,” Wong told ATPTour.com. “One day she was sick and we had a coach, but we didn't want to waste money, waste the time, so my parents took me there to try one lesson and see how I liked it. I just started and then I kept going.”

Two years after first picking up a racquet, Wong was playing national tournaments and beating opponents several years older and ‘much taller’ than him. With his dominance established locally, it was time to test his game on a broader stage.

“I think my first time leaving Hong Kong was when I was eight or nine years old, I think I went to China or Korea. I started playing overseas,” Wong said. “I think at nine or 10 I started playing a lot and believing that I could actually play tennis.”

Now at a career-high No. 188 in the PIF ATP Rankings, Wong has enjoyed a fast ascent from his No. 696 position a year ago. So far this season, he made his ATP Tour debut on home soil in Hong Kong, qualified for the ATP Masters 1000 event in Miami and reached his third ATP Challenger Tour final in New Delhi, India.

While Wong has been travelling the globe playing in world-class tournaments, the residents of Hong Kong are keeping a close eye on the teen, who aspires to nurture the growth of tennis in his homeland.

^{Coleman Wong at last month's Miami Open presented by Itau. Credit: Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour}

“I really hope I can inspire more kids to play. Sometimes when I play Davis Cup or different tournaments in Hong Kong, there will be parents or kids coming up saying, 'Oh, Coleman, you're the inspiration for my kids. They started playing tennis because of you,’” Wong said. “That means a lot to me. That's what I wanted to do since I started playing tennis.

“I'm really proud of myself representing Hong Kong and being the one that plays tennis.”

Wong enjoyed great junior success, partnering Max Westphal to win the 2021 US Open boys’ doubles title and then triumphing at the 2022 Australian Open boys' doubles event alongside Bruno Kuzuhara. Later that year at Flushing Meadows, Wong became the first player from Hong Kong to reach the semi-finals of a major boys' singles event.

At age 17, Wong began training at the Rafa Nadal Academy, where he has relished the opportunity to hit with the former No. 1 on plenty of occasions.

“Obviously I was starstruck the first time. You are like, 'Wow, it's Rafa.' First time, he hits really hard at you,” Wong said with a smile. “He's obviously my idol. I think the first time I was obviously so tight. Then slowly we started talking a bit more.

“We always see him. If he's not training, he will be doing recovery, gym. He's always following my journey as well, like my tournaments, especially in Miami recently. His uncle Toni helped me with some tips before the matches as well because he knows the players I played against. It's a really good environment. I learn a lot from them.”

^{Coleman Wong at the Nonthaburi Challenger in January. Credit: Bangkok Open}

Competing at this week's Gwangju Open Challenger, Wong is aiming for his maiden trip to the season-finale Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, which runs from 18-22 December in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

The #NextGenATP player is balancing his young career while taking online classes at the University of Hong Kong, where his sister also studies.

Wong’s parents both work in education — his father Bruce is a principal while his mother Dora is a teacher — and they have collectively agreed on the decision for the teenager to continue studying.

“I'm really proud to be [there]. I like it. I'm a student and I'm just trying to balance it out. They are really nice because I have my own program, so I can do it when I'm not in tournaments,” Wong said. “In training weeks, I can do lessons with the professor. I have my own professor to help me with that.”

Time spent thinking about tennis: 24/7 🧠

Meet rising star Coleman Wong ⬇️#OnTheRise | @nextgenfinals pic.twitter.com/bu9n4khvNT

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) February 13, 2024