See below for our expert daily tennis tips and best bets around the courts for Thursday 9th of October 2025!
World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka takes on 16th seed Liudmila Samsonova in the Round of 16 as she chases a fourth Wuhan Open title.
Sabalenka leads the head-to-head 3-2, winning the last two encounters at the 2024 Cincinnati Masters and 2025 Indian Wells Masters.
Defending champion Sabalenka overcame Rebecca Sramkova 4-6 6-3 6-1 in the Round of 32, her first match since taking out the US Open.
Samsonova has struggled for consistency since reaching the Wimbledon quarters, but she’s overcame Emiliana Arango (6-1 7-5) and Sofia Kenin (3-6 6-3 6-1) in Wuhan so far.
Boasting a perfect career record at this tournament, Sabalenka is impossible to back against here – but Samsonova should keep it relatively close.
Swiss veteran and 13th seed Belinda Bencic confronts world No.2 Iga Swiatek in the Wuhan Open’s Round of 16.
Swiatek boasts a 4-1 record against Bencic, whose sole win was at the 2021 US Open. Swiatek has won all four matches since, including a 6-2 6-0 rout in this year’s Wimbledon semifinals.
Bencic enjoyed a form upswing at the China Open and carried that on with a 6-2 6-2 thrashing of Donna Vekic in the first round in Wuhan, before getting a Round of 32 walkover.
Swiatek is on a 26-3 starting with her Wimbledon triumph. She won the Korea Open last month before being upset by Emma Navarro in the China Open’s Round of 16. The Polish powerhouse crushed Marie Bouzkova 6-1 6-1 in her first assignment here.
It’s been a tremendous comeback season from Bencic so far, but she’s likely to struggle to keep up with Swiatek in this one.
Monaco-born qualifier Valentin Vacherot is aiming to keep his breakout run going in the Shanghai Masters quarterfinals against 10th seed Holger Rune.
The veteran of just one grand slam match and featuring in only his second Masters tournament, 26-year-old Vacherot won two qualifying matches before dumping out seeds Alexander Bublik (3-6 6-3 6-4), Tomas Machac (6-0 3-1) and Tallon Griekspoor (4-6 7-6 6-4).
A four-time ATP 1000 finalist and the Paris Masters champion in 2022, Rune is into the last eight in Shanghai for the first time courtesy of wins over Sebastian Baez (7-5 6-4), Ugo Humbert (6-4 6-4) and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard (6-4 6-7 6-3).
Vacherot’s resilience in fighting back from a set down twice despite his relative tour-level inexperience ensures the enigmatic Rune, a $1.25 favourite, will have his work cut out here.
World No.44 Zizou Bergs lines up in his first ATP 1000 quarterfinal in Shanghai against 40-time Masters champion Novak Djokovic.
Bergs reached his first two ATP finals earlier this year and has beaten quality players Sebastian Korda (6-4 7-5), Casper Ruud (3-6 7-5 4-1 ret), Francisco Cerundolo (7-6 6-3) and Gabriel Diallo (3-6 7-5 7-6)
A four-time Shanghai Masters winner and the runner-up to Jannik Sinner last year, Djokovic has had his share of bumps along the way here in getting past Marin Cilic (7-6 6-4), Yannik Hanfmann (4-6 7-5 6-3) and Jaume Munar (6-3 5-7 6-2).
Djokovic’s only losses in the past four and a half months were to Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, and he’s currently the $3.10 favourite to take the title with the world’s top two players out.
He may have to ride out some more rough spots against the in-form Bergs but expect the 38-year-old legend to get the job done.