Michael Zheng’s Incredible Story: Ivy League Student Who Plays in the Australian Open | ATP tour | Tennis

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The incredible story of Michael Zheng: Ivy League student who plays in the Australian Open

How the Columbia University star balances a heavy academic workload with playing elite tennis
January 17, 2026

Michael Zheng will take five courses this spring semester at Columbia University in New York, where he is a senior. The 21-year-old will soon graduate from the Ivy League institution, one of the most prestigious schools in the world.

But even though school starts Jan. 20, that won’t be his focus this week. Instead, the student-athlete on the other side of the world will take part in a major main draw for the first time at the Australian Open.

“Right now I’m very excited,” Zheng, a qualifier, told ATPTour.com. “And I’m relieved to have gotten through that and get the chance to play my first main draw.”

A year ago that was more than unlikely. Zheng was the reigning NCAA men’s singles champion, but was still outside the Top 700 in the PIF ATP rankings. Still, he has balanced a rigorous education — earning Academic All-American honors and the Rafael Osuna National Sportsmanship Award in 2025 — and college tennis with proving he can compete with the best players in the world.

Zheng has long shown prowess, dating back to when his father, Joe, decided to introduce Michael and his older sister, Amy, to the sport at their local high school at the age of two. Joe, who moved to the United States from China, fell in love with the sport upon arrival and passed it on to his children.

Growing up in New Jersey, Zheng spent three days a week during high school training at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, home of the US Open. And towards the end of his junior career, the American reached the 2022 Wimbledon boys’ singles final, beating Coleman Wong and Martin Landaluce.

“I had some talent, so he wanted to see how far he could go,” Zheng said of his father. “And now we are playing my first main tournament here [of a major]. It has been quite a tournament.”

But it was an atypical one. Zheng is an active student who has to prepare for winter psychology courses in New York in the coming days. Instead, it warms up in the Australian summer. It doesn’t matter much to the modest student, but Ivy League courses are difficult enough in themselves.

“The academic rigor has helped Michael in many ways, especially mentally,” said Howard Endelman, the head men’s tennis coach at Columbia. “The schoolwork is complementary; it allows Michael to focus and develop aspects of his life outside of tennis. While it may be counterintuitive, this combination has helped Michael develop into a well-rounded person, which has actually helped his tennis.”

According to Zheng, Endelman consistently emphasizes this message.

“You learn how to manage your time and when you’re busy, I think you can manage it a little better because you’re putting all that work in and balancing your school at the same time,” Zheng said. “I think it gives you that little bit of a mental edge, that maybe you do a little bit more than those other guys, and at the same time your level is there.”

What makes his moment in the spotlight against Sebastian Korda at Melbourne Park on Sunday more impressive is how he got there. Not only did he work his way through a tough qualifying round, but he also made a big run to earn his place in the top spot in qualifying.

In early June, Zheng was still outside the world’s Top 700. But a run to the ATP Challenger final in Little Rock saw a huge surge, with titles in Chicago, Columbus and Tiburon showing this was no fluke.

“Right after winning the Tiburon Challenger Finals in October, Michael took a red-eye flight on Sunday evening so he could take an in-person exam in New York City on Monday morning,” Endelman said. “He just takes it all in stride.”

The last two tournament victories came while Zheng was taking five classes before successfully defending his NCAA singles crown.

“Definitely not easy. At the same time, I think people tend to overestimate the studies. I think you can make it as difficult or as easy as you want,” said Zheng, a psychology major. “I’m traveling and missing quite a bit of class, so I’m not going to do anything too crazy like neuroscience, biology or something like that. But at the same time, you can sign up for whatever classes you want to take.”

When he entered college, Zheng did not plan to study psychology, but economics. The 21-year-old found it interesting, even though he doesn’t believe there is a strong connection between his studies and psychology on the tennis court.

Zheng’s memorable run almost came to an end in the final qualifying round against Lukas Klein, against whom he faced a match point in the final set tiebreak. But the Columbia Lion handled that pressure the same way he did at school: successfully.

“Nothing seems to bother Michael, on or off the field, especially when something goes wrong,” Endelman said. “Michael lost the lead after being up 7/1 and 9/7 in the tiebreak of the last set, after which he suddenly served 9/10 behind. Without emotion, he calmly goes to the line and saves match point with an ace wide.”

Although Zheng’s tennis career is just beginning, the future looks bright for the college standout both on and off the court. But the world number 174 is not too worried at the moment about what will happen to his psychology degree.

“I’m not thinking too long-term at the moment,” Zheng said. “I’m just concentrating on seeing how far I can go with tennis and at least focusing on that 100 percent.”