America’s Taylor Fritz is eyeing a ‘three-peat’ at the Delray Beach Open. The two-time defending champion will face China’s Bu Yunchaokete in the R16 of the 2025 Delray Beach Open. Fritz is a clear favorite to win this tournament but in tennis, we’ve often seen lesser-known entities throwing some major challenges towards the bigger stars. Hence, anything can happen!

Yunchaokete stunned the tennis world last year with his incredible performances during the Asian swing. Can he now force a massive upset at this tournament, though?

Taylor Fritz vs. Bu Yunchaokete: Preview

Entering any tournament as a defending champion adds up extra pressure automatically. What does Taylor Fritz have to say on this? “The first seed, everyone is going for you. People are going to play like they have nothing to lose against you. I have to be able to get people’s best level in the matches this week and have to do what I did in the past and stay mentally strong,” said America’s number one. How does he look at clinching the title for the third time in a row at the Delray Beach Open? In reply to this question, Taylor Fritz stated, “It would be awesome. I was pumped to win two in a row. It would be really cool.”

Taylor Fritz looked quite impressive last year. However, this year he’s yet to find his A-game! Although he did manage to help Team USA win the United Cup, Fritz failed to deliver at the 2025 AO. He went down to Gael Monfils (FRA) in the third round. Even at the Dallas Open, he was defeated by Canada’s Denis Shapovalov by 6-2,3-6,6(2)-7 in the R16. Can he change his fortunes at his familiar ‘battleground’?

Bu Yunchaokete is still a newcomer on the ATP Tour. However, he did manage to put his name in the headlines with his two SF runs in Hangzhou and Beijing last year. His incredible performances in that tournament secured his place inside the Top 100. Reacting to that incredible milestone in his career, Yunchaokete said, “I can enjoy this much more without any pressure, without any mental burden. I am starting to enjoy tennis, my level of play. I don’t need to consider the ranking or specific goals. Now I am in the top 100, I’m not under any more pressure. I will just enjoy each match.”

Talking about enjoying, well, Bu Yunchaokete did enjoy his time at the 2025 Open Occitanie. He reached the QF over there but he was defeated by Felix Auger-Aliassima (CAN) in that match by 3-6,4-6. Apart from that, he has failed to put up any noteworthy performances this season. He made early exits from the ASB Classic, AO, and even the Dallas Open!

Fritz vs. Yunchaokete: Head-to-Head

Taylor Fritz has never faced this 23-year-old Chinese player in his career, before. So, this will be their first meeting, and hence their H2H record is currently untouched at 0-0. Yunchaokete has nine hard court titles from the Challenger events and the ITF circuit. Can he manage to put up a strong challenge against this mighty American?

Prediction: Fritz to in straight sets

Taylor Fritz will be desperate to keep his winning run intact in this tournament. He was quite exceptional in the 2023 and the 2024 editions and now, he’ll be hoping to put up a similar dominating performance in this season as well. Although he has looked a bit rusty at times this season, we must not rule out Taylor Fritz’s chances on American soil. We saw what he did at the 2024 US Open, right? So, with the help of home support and an abundance of experience in playing bigger matches, we feel Fritz will have the last laugh in this match.

Taylor Fritz is currently ranked 4th in the world and he has a win-loss record of 3-3 in the 2025 season. On the other hand, Bu Yunchaokete (69) has a win-loss record of just 3-5.

Bu Yunchaokete is a relatively inexperienced campaigner, but his style of play is quite impressive. He is known for a playing style that emphasizes solid fundamentals, composure, and a well-rounded game. He loves using his strong two-handed backhand and also has a unique ability to adapt to different opponents. His key strengths lie in his ability to extend rallies and draw errors from his opponents. Yunchaokete also has a solid baseline game and his tactical intelligence can at times frustrate players who love playing an aggressive brand of tennis.

Taylor Fritz is an offensive baseliner. His groundstrokes are powerful and penetrating and they can force errors out of his opponents. He has a strong forehand and backhand in his armory. Apart from that, Taylor Fritz loves hitting aces! He is really a good server and guess what? In this season, he has already hit 101 aces! Fritz also has a unique ability to hit sharp-angle cross-court shots on both forehand and backhand sides. However, we must not forget his incredible topspin lob! Overall, looking at all these aspects in this game and Fritz’s record in this tournament, we feel the American may seal the deal pretty quickly in this match.