He was 17 years old. 5'9". 135 pounds. His serve was so weak that opponents laughed when they saw it. By every metric, he had no business being on the same court as Ivan Lendl, let alone beating him. But in 1989, at the French Open, this kid from New Jersey did something that still doesn't make sense. He didn't overpower anyone. He didn't out-hit anyone. He just... won. Here's how. #michaelchang #frenchopen #tennisanalysis #tennis #atp #sports #tennisstars
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The narration diminishes Chang so much... it's not like he won the FO and then disappeared... He reached 58 ATP tournament finals and won 34. He won his last tournament in July 2000.
Chang had speed, determination, strategy, spirit, fitness and high percentage shots. In other words, he was the King of Pushers at the highest level. And we all know how difficult it is to beat a really solid pusher.
This sounds like an AI made video
His win changed my life. Made me believe that I was good enough at my size. 5’3” in 7th grade. I ended up achieving more than I could have ever imagined. Thank you Micheal. Ty. Being an Asian kid in San Diego with all the dominate rich white talent was horrible. Especially with the tournaments run by a bunch of white old gate keepers fixing draws and such. U gave me the courage to go against the grain. Once I grew into my size the white boys were so bummed. I enjoyed every moment. Ty my g
Chang broke many US record as a teenager and was beating Sampas and Agassi growing up. It wasn’t a fluke, he was a top player for over a decade
These videos with A.I. voices are made by people who know so little about tennis. He made it sound like Chang’s entire tennis career was just pure luck. Chang had one of the best baseline games of his generation and was definitely better than most people in the top 10 at that time. In fact, he stayed in the top 10 and top 5 for a very long time (probably a decade or more if I remember correctly). He also got to the number 2 ranking and played in 4 grand slam finals (on 3 different surfaces which he won 1 and lost 3). His career probably would’ve gone even longer if he didn’t injure one of his knees which slowed him down significantly. Depending on which opponent he played, some shots were intentionally played very soft to exploit weaknesses of players who can’t generate their own pace (a tactic that Brad Gilbert used a lot during his professional years).
Chang was in 1989 already a wonder kid like Agassi. With only 17 years old he was Top 20 Atp , number 15 in Roland Garros . He had to beat Sampras Lendl Edberg , current and future legends. He had to battle 5 sets angainst tennis super stars and 4 sets againt difficult clay experienced players like Agenor and Chesnokov. That was his entrance in the hall of fame of tennis. Since that day all players knew they will suffer to beat Chang. Chang was and is one of the SMARTEST Tennis player ever along with Borg.
Chang and Sampras are about the same age. I remember Chang once said, when they played junior matches, he almost always beat Sampras
Chang was 2 in the world, years after this. Play Sampras in Finals of US Open. He was always competitive. Commenters below don't have proper memory of that era. Plus. Chang win one and only major at 17, during Tian an men Square student uprising. It HOW he won, make his only grand slam extremely difficult to 'one up.' You could win 4 or 5 grand slams and that one for Chang, with the Chinese watching him, seeking a sign from him, much better than multiple grand slams. In 2026, It HOW you win to increase your social media 'clout.' If you don't remember how good Chang was, during his career, keep your delusions to yourself.
you should check on on 95 96 years. he actually aces people. When he retired and played the senior tour, he played well again. Michael Has one of the biggest quads in histroy of the game. I still think he was pretty cool.
Didn't take long for the power game to overtake him. Bigger, stronger, harder hitting guys arrived and he never won another grand slam in his entire career after the French in '89. I distinctly remember Carlos Moya hammering him off the court at the Australian Open.
I was a Michael Chang fan and still is. He was the ultimate underdog, but there was something about him that makes you take notice of him, yet not easy to understand. But he was my favorite that while I was on my tennis team, my tennis shoes were Michael Chang Reebok Pumps.
Being underestimated ("cute Asian boy") played a role, too. Chang didn't have as much physical power as most otherpokayers of his generation. - but more than opponents expected. Yes, he could hit an ace at 190 kph from time to time. Just not that often. Opponents expectes him to run fast. - but not that fast. Part of his success was outperforming expectations. Don't forget: Chang beat Sampras 8 times. He beat Jim Courier 12 times. He won matches against Lendl, Agassi, Edberg, McEnroe, Rafter, Becker and even young Roger Federer once.
He actually sent plenty of ACES to his opponents during his career
Chang wasn’t the most powerful player on the court, but his power was more than adequate. And that backhand was as good as anyone else’s at the time.
Chang got legs
Sampras, Agassi, Chang I only know these 3, so he couldn't be bad
Chang improved his serve at later years in the tour, He is blasting aces he can git 115mph to 120mph
Wonder what both Lendl & edberg thought after they lost to Chang ?? He was good enough for another slam win , but played during a decade LOADED with top players - one of the strongest eras
Chang was awesome