British star Liam Broady will have to return to complete his quarter-final match at the Busan Challenger after play was suspended at the beginning of the second set. The 32-year-old has been tearing it up on the Challenger Tour of late, lifting the trophy in Miyazaki earlier this month, and reaching the last eight in Yokkaichi a week earlier.
A former top-100 player, Broady took the first set over August Holmgren 6-3 on Thursday, but the match was rained off once Holmgren held to lead 1-0 in set two, and both players swiftly left the court. Play was cancelled and postponed to Friday, and the winner will have to return later in the day to face Leandro Riedi in the semi-finals.
Broady is currently on a seven-match winning streak following his recent title win in Japan. The world No. 250 then headed to Busan, storming past Murphy Cassone to win his opening match 6-0 6-1 in just 45 minutes. He then beat former top-40 star Ilya Ivashka 6-1 6-3.
The Brit dealt with plenty of inclement weather during his run to the title in Miyazaki a few weeks ago, with some matches even played on indoor courts due to heavy rainfall. Broady came from a set down to beat his countryman and doubles partner Harry Wendelken 3-6 6-2 6-2 in the final.
In his blog, the world No. 250 revealed that his grandma had passed away ahead of the Miyazaki final, and he credited her for motivating him to keep fighting after recent injury woes.
Broady wrote: “Finally I sealed the win, and looked up to the sky and walked to shake Wendy’s hand, I didn’t want to celebrate as it was a difficult result for his chase of Roland Garros qualifying.
“I sat down and began to cry, of course my first challenger win since my injury had to be the day after Nanny had passed. A cruel twist of fate that she hadn’t been watching at home to see one of the few triumphs on my journey back.”
Broady returned to the world’s top 250 for the first time since 2024 after lifting his third Challenger title. And the former world No. 93 has kept on winning. When Broady returns to the court in Busan on Friday, he needs one more set to reach the semi-finals.