Shang is starting to make a racket among the ATP elite

Never the tallest, or the biggest among his peers when growing up, China's tennis prodigy Shang Juncheng knows he has to pattern his game to be the fastest and sharpest.

And it has been working a treat for the 19-year-old southpaw, with many of "the youngest" records in Chinese tennis falling under his name. However, a reality check hit on Saturday to remind him how far he still needs to go.

As soon as the opening serve in his second-round match against Carlos Alcaraz at the Rolex Shanghai Masters, Shang realized he was hitting against the ultimate version of his type — a fast and furious attacker and an almost invincible defender, combined in one — after the Spanish four-time major winner broke him in the first game, setting the tone for a 76-minute straight-sets win.