Buyunchaokete became the third Chinese player to reach the second round of the Rolex Shanghai Masters after a punishing serving performance against Luca Van Assche Thursday night.

Buyunchaokete won 37 of 38 points on his first serve and did not face a break point en route to a 7-6(3), 6-3 victory, which set up a second-round clash with former World No. 2 Casper Ruud.

One day earlier, Wu Yibing and fast-rising 21-year-old Zhou Yi both won their openers.

“I served really well today,” Bu said.

“He has an amazing backhand. He’s very aggressive and he doesn’t miss. So I kept more to the forehand and tried to serve well.

“I had the advantage in the service games. He's not that tall, so I think I serve bigger than him.

“I tried to be very focused in the [return] game, tried to give him something tricky [to deal with] or give him some trouble. In the second set, he gave me a chance. He had two double faults, gave me the chance to break him, and then I took the advantage.”

Buyunchaokete this week climbed 11 places in the PIF ATP Rankings to move back inside the Top 100 at No. 93. The 24-year-old is enjoying a strong Asian swing, having reached the quarter-finals in Hangzhou. In Beijing, he pushed eventual champion Novak Djokovic to three sets in the second round.

Looking ahead to his match with Ruud, Buyunchaokete suggested that he would be more likely to play into his opponent’s backhand.

“They play differently,” he said. “Casper, I played him one time, in the main draw at the US Open. He doesn't give you free points. Kind of similar, but I think Casper has a better serve and better forehand. Maybe the backhand, Luca is better.

“He's a great player and he's very tough, and he doesn't give you any free points. So I will be ready. I'll try to rest a lot tonight and tomorrow and be ready for the day after tomorrow.”