Tennis News

Five coaches nominated for 2024 Coach of the Year

Before champions are crowned in front of packed stadiums on the ATP Tour, they are made on the practice court under the watchful eye of their coaches. These coaches often work in the background, happy to leave the glory to their players. In the 2024 ATP Awards, our five Coach of the Year nominees step into the spotlight.

This year’s nominees are Xavier Malisse (coach of Alexei Popyrin), Emmanuel Planque (Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard), Michael Russell (Taylor Fritz), Brad Stine (Tommy Paul) and James Trotman (Jack Draper). The nominees and winner in this category are voted on by fellow coaches.

ATP Awards winners will be announced during Awards Week, starting Monday, 9 December.

Xavier Malisse (Alexei Popyrin)
As part of Popyrin’s coaching team alongside Neville Godwin, Malisse — a former Top 20 player in the PIF ATP Rankings — has helped the Aussie climb to the cusp of that elite group this season. Under the tutelage of Malisse and Godwin, a former Top 100 player himself, Popyrin won the biggest title of his career at the Cincinnati ATP Masters 1000 and entered the Top 25 for the first time.

“Neville and I worked a lot on the backhand. We’ve been working on more variety, slicing a little bit, and then working with the serve,” said Malisse, who also credited fitness coach Evan Jenkins and physiotherapist Valentin Hollier for improving Popyrin’s strength.

Malisse and Godwin also emphasised patience with Popyrin, encouraging him to work the points more and attack at the right moment.

Malisse’s coaching style in his own words: “Neville and I are a little bit different. When we are at the match, Neville might be a bit more intense sometimes, talking to Alexei. I stay more very relaxed, try to keep emotions in check, which is not always easy. But I like to say little things at the right time. I think coaching is knowing when to say something.”

Emmanuel Planque (Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard)
Planque guided the 21-year-old Mpetshi Perricard to a breakout season, with the Frenchman winning his first two ATP Tour titles (Lyon, Basel) and breaking into the Top 30 of the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time.

“Giovanni had an excellent 2024 season, managing to improve his way of playing week after week,” said Planque, pointing to the four tournaments (including three on the ATP Challenger Tour) Perricard won from February to May. “He is starting to become familiar with high-level matches. The end of the season sent us this message by winning in Basel. However, we are aware that we still have a lot of work to do to one day be among the best players.”

Mpetshi Perricard was also nominated for a 2024 ATP Award, in the Most Improved Player category.

Planque’s coaching style in his own words: “It’s never really easy to define your way of working. Certainly, I am demanding and I strongly believe in work values but in fact, I simply hope to be a human, fair, and respectful coach of the athletes with whom I work.”

Coach of the Year 😎 #ATPAwards pic.twitter.com/fElcl0XNFH

— ATP Tour (@atptour) November 25, 2024

Michael Russell (Taylor Fritz)
Russell helped Fritz reach his first Grand Slam final at the US Open as well as his first title match at the Nitto ATP Finals. After posting a 17-4 record at the Grand Slams, more than doubling his previous high for major wins in a year, the American finished the season at a career-high PIF ATP Ranking of No. 4.

Asked where he made the biggest impact on Fritz’s game this season, Russell’s response was indicative of his holistic approach to coaching: “I think there is some impact in all parts of his game to continuing to be physically stronger and more explosive on and off the court, to being more comfortable finishing points at the net as well as having more confidence in pressure situations and stages.”

Russell’s coaching style in his own words: “My coaching style would be a mix of holistic, democratic, and autocratic. You have to have open communication and be empathetic while still creating structure and accountability. Taylor and I have a very good synergistic relationship.”

Brad Stine (Tommy Paul)
Stine helped Paul win three titles this season (Dallas, Queen’s Club, Stockholm) after the American entered 2024 with just one ATP Tour trophy to his name. Those three winning weeks, plus a final run in Delray Beach, led Paul to finish the year at a career-high PIF ATP Ranking of No. 12.

Stine feels his biggest impact on Paul this season was on the mental side of the game, particularly his “commitment to his identity as a player and his mental toughness”.

Stine’s coaching style in his own words: “Collaborative.”


James Trotman (Jack Draper)
Trotman was in Draper’s corner for the Briton’s breakout season, which included his first two tour-level titles in Stuttgart and Vienna. Set to turn 23 on 22 December, Draper will finish the year at a career-high PIF ATP Ranking of No. 15.

“I think the biggest area I helped Jack with his tennis this season was to play more aggressively, especially in the bigger moments in matches,” Trotman said of his season alongside the British No. 1. “A mentality in those situations to play to win.”

Draper was also nominated for a 2024 ATP Award, in the Most Improved Player category.

Trotman’s coaching style in his own words: “My coaching style would be very much around sticking to a plan and not being too reactive, given the nature of the Tour with its ups and downs. Try to identify those areas of development and be consistent with the work to make those improvements over time.”

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Farewell Neale Fraser, 3-time major champion & Australian Davis Cup hero

Neale Fraser, an estimable Australian left-hander who owned one of the craftiest serves in tennis during his prime years in the late 1950’s and early sixties, securing no fewer than 19 major championships altogether in singles, doubles and mixed doubles between 1956 and 1962 despite frequently living in the shadows of countrymen including Lew Hoad, Ken Rosewall, Ashley Cooper and Mal Anderson, and establishing himself as an outstanding Davis Cup player and captain—died on 2 December, 2024. He was 91.

Exploiting his versatile serve to the hilt and turning it into the cornerstone of his game, Fraser was a formidable player who thrived in an era when three of the four majors were held on grass. Fraser’s southpaw mastery of spins on serve set him apart in his time and made him especially formidable on grass courts. His serve was deceptive and often unstoppable. He could release it flat into the corners, carve it with slice out wide or stifle right-handed opponents with his devilish deuce court kick serve to the forehand.

Fraser was a tried and true serve-and-volleyer, backing up his excellent delivery with soundness on the volley, attacking relentlessly, smothering opponents with his capacity to come forward at all the right times. He was a product of his era on fast courts, unrelentingly aggressive as a match player, weighing the percentages assiduously to give himself the best possible chance to succeed.

The ITHF remembers Hall of Famer Neale Fraser, one of Australia’s legends.

A 19-time major champion and stalwart in Davis Cup as a player and captain, Fraser reached the game’s peak and mentored a generation of Aussies.

Our thoughts are with his family and friends today.

— International Tennis Hall of Fame (@TennisHalloFame) December 3, 2024

Neale Andrew Fraser was born on 3 October, 1933 in Melbourne where he grew up and lived as an adult, starting to play tennis at the age of eleven on a neighbour’s court with his brother John, a physician later in life and a decent player in his own right who once made the semi-finals of Wimbledon in doubles alongside Rod Laver. The son of a lawyer who became a judge, Neale Fraser won his first tournament — a 13-and-under event — at 12. At 17 he won the Australian National Junior Championships. By 1954, when he turned 21, Fraser was included on the Australian overseas team, touring with the likes of Hoad and Rosewall under the tutelage of the revered coach and Davis Cup captain Harry Hopman, making crucial strides in that period.

Ranked among the Top 10 in the world every year from 1956-62 by most leading authorities, rising to No. 1 twice at the start of the sixties, Fraser was prominent in an era when all of the top players were expected to enter the singles, doubles and mixed doubles events at the sport’s showcase tournaments.

Hence his achievement in sweeping all three events at the 1959 and 1960 U.S. Championships was among his highest honors. In 1959, he defeated the charismatic Peruvian Alex Olmedo in the singles final, joined Emerson to topple Olmedo and the American Butch Buchholz in the doubles final, and secured the mixed doubles crown with Margaret Osborne duPont of the U.S. over the American Janet Hopps and the Australian Bob Mark.

A year later, he replicated that feat, claiming the singles title in straight sets over Laver, and defending his men’s and mixed doubles titles with Emerson and Osborne duPont. That was no mean feat against staunch opposition. Fraser demonstrated that he was the tennis player’s tennis player by virtue of those successes, putting forth the same inexhaustible effort into his doubles pursuits as he did on his own in singles.

He reaffirmed that fact by excelling in Davis Cup competition for his country, winning 18 of 21 matches in singles and doubles combined, losing only once in singles, playing a central role in leading Australia to four consecutive Davis Cup triumphs from 1959-62. The first of those triumphs featured Fraser in full flight. In the Challenge Round against the United States at Forest Hills, Fraser stopped Alex Olmedo in four sets on opening day, teamed with Roy Emerson to win the doubles over Olmedo and Butch Buchholz, and sealed victory for his nation in the fifth and final match by ousting Barry MacKay in four sets. That was an extraordinary three-day feat and a singular achievement for the industrious Fraser.

Only three of his 19 majors were secured in singles, but they represented his proudest moments as a player. The groundbreaking singles triumph was in 1959 at Forest Hills when he was 26. But perhaps his victory at Wimbledon the following year was even more psychically rewarding.

On that occasion in 1960, he took on Laver, a dazzling shotmaker who would win two Grand Slams over the course of that decade. Never before had two left-handers clashed in a title round meeting on those hallowed grounds. Fraser, who reached match point at the start of that season before losing a classic Australian Championships final with Laver in five sets, overcame his gifted countryman and rival by playing a better brand of sustained percentage tennis when they dueled again in Great Britain, succeeding 6-4, 3-6, 9-7, 7-5. In many ways, it was his finest hour in a storied career.

But Fraser was somewhat fortunate to even be in the final. Confronting Buchholz in the quarter-finals, Fraser saved five match points and barely survived. Buchholz retired with cramps when Fraser trailed two sets to one and the game score was locked at 15-15 in the fourth set. Thus Fraser established himself as one of only nine men in Wimbledon history to take the singles title after being down at least one match point during the course of the tournament. He returned to Forest Hills later in that summer of 1960 and retained his title commandingly, coming through without losing a set in seven matches, moving past Laver with sweeping efficiency 6-4, 6-4, 9-7 in the final.

That was a defining moment for Fraser, who was inducted at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1984. It was arguably the best tennis he ever played on an auspicious occasion. He retired in 1963 but remained in the forefront of tennis for decades to come. Always a cagey student of the game and an outstanding teacher as well, he took over from Hopman as Davis Cup captain in 1970 and remained in that post for 23 years. Four times in that span, the Australians were victorious, taking the coveted Cup in 1973, 1977, 1983 and 1986. Fraser provided valuable council to Laver and John Newcombe in the first of those triumphs and advised Pat Cash in the latter. His 1983 squad was strikingly inexperienced, but Fraser brought out the best in his contingent. Never was there a generation gap when Neale Fraser was interacting with those players. He commanded respect as a strict disciplinarian who proved his equanimity and empathy with a wide range of players.

Fraser is survived by his wife Thea, brother John, children, grandchildren and many family members.

Story reproduced with permission from International Tennis Hall of Fame.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

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Tsitsipas & Serena go live: 'You aced me!'

When you have the opportunity to chat with Serena Williams, you don’t pass up on it. Just ask Stefanos Tsitsipas.

The Greek No. 11 in the PIF ATP Rankings couldn’t resist making a surprise appearance on Williams’ Instagram Live on Monday, when the two shared a heartfelt exchange. Tsitsipas asked the 23-time Grand Slam titlist: “If you had to pick one, what would be your favourite moment from your entire career?”

“I think winning Australia pregnant,” responded Williams. “I was nine weeks pregnant when it was done! I was almost done with the first trimester…”

Williams, one of the most iconic figures in the sport of tennis, is no stranger to Tsitsipas. Over the course of the American’s 10-year collaboration with coach Patrick Mouratoglou, during which she won 10 majors and an Olympic gold medal, Tsitsipas established himself as a regular at Mouratoglou’s academy. 

They would occasionally practise together with coach Mouratoglou and even battled it out in a Hopman Cup match in 2018.

“You aced me! I will never forget that,” Tsitsipas said.

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Van de Zandschulp, Cazaux shocks among biggest Grand Slam upsets of 2024

Ousting a top player is one thing, but doing it in a five-set match is something else.

There were plenty of surprise results at Grand Slam events in 2024, when a host of players notched statement wins on some of the biggest stages in tennis.

As part of our annual season-in-review series, ATPTour.com counts down the five most unexpected upsets of the year at the majors. Check out our biggest ATP Tour upsets of 2024 here.

5) Wimbledon R1: Mpetshi Perricard d. Korda 7-6(5), 6-7(4), 7-6(6), 6-3
Sebastian Korda’s red-hot mid-year form suffered a surprise blip when faced with a big-serving barrage from Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.

The 20th-seeded Korda arrived at Wimbledon fresh from a final run in ‘s-Hertogenbosch and a semi-final appearance at Queen’s Club, but a powerful display from SW19 debutant Mpetshi Perricard ended the American’s grass-court season. The 20-year-old lucky loser, who began 2024 outside the Top 200 but was competing against Korda as the World No. 58, fired 51 aces on Court 16 to notch a statement triumph.

The quality of Mpetshi Perricard’s first main-draw win at a major was only underlined further when Korda lifted his maiden ATP 500 title at his very next event, the Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington, before reaching his second ATP Masters 1000 semi-final in Montreal.

In contrast, Mpetshi Perricard struggled to immediately back up his run at Wimbledon, where he went on to reach the fourth round. The Frenchman won just two matches across eight tournaments after the grass-court major, but he then bounced back spectacularly by charging to an ATP 500 crown of his own in Basel. Mpetshi Perricard finished the 2024 season at No. 30 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

4) US Open R3: Popyrin d Djokovic 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4
Alexei Popyrin had three attempts at upsetting record-24-time major champion Novak Djokovic on the Grand Slam stage in 2024. After falling to the Serbian in four sets at both the Australian Open and Wimbledon, Popyrin unleashed his brand of ‘big-man tennis’ to spectacular effect to sink Djokovic in the third round at the US Open.

Popyrin, playing with confidence after winning his maiden Masters 1000 title in Montreal earlier in August, hit 50 winners past the World No. 2 Djokovic. With plenty of power in his game on serve and off the ground, Popyrin causing his illustrious opponent problems may not have come as a huge surprise. Yet the key to the biggest win of his career by PIF ATP Ranking was the consistency he found across the three sets he won.

“Third time lucky [this year] I guess,” said Popyrin, who went on to push eventual finalist Taylor Fritz to four sets in the fourth round. “Honestly, we had some battles at the Australian Open and Wimbledon. I had my chances in those matches, but didn’t take them. This match was a little different. I was able to take my chances when I had them and played some good tennis.”

<img alt=”Alexei Popyrin” style=”width: 100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/08/31/03/40/popyrin-us-open-2024-friday-roar.jpg” />

_{^{Alexei Popyrin celebrates after upsetting Novak Djokovic in the third round at the US Open. Photo Credit: AFP/Getty Images}}

3) Wimbledon R1: Comesana d Rublev 6-4, 5-7, 6-2, 7-6(5)
Francisco Comesana gave a lesson in getting to grips quickly with grass in July at Wimbledon.

The Argentine arrived in the United Kingdom in June having never played a match on the surface at any level, neither as a professional nor as a junior. He lost his first outing on the lawns of Eastbourne in an ATP 250 qualifying match, before being presented with the task of taking on Andrey Rublev, the World No. 6 and 2023 Wimbledon quarter-finalist, in his opening round at SW19.

Despite his almost complete lack of grass-court experience, the World No. 122 Comesana rose to the occasion in style to stun Rublev with memorable four-set victory. It was the first tour-level win of the 23-year-old’s career, one he backed up by beating Adam Walton in the second round before falling to eventual semi-finalist Lorenzo Musetti.

“My family is in Argentina now and I have spoken with them and my girlfriend, who is very excited,” Comesana told ATPTour.com after defeating Rublev. “My phone will break with all the messages I am receiving! It is amazing. I just enjoyed every moment of the match. I tried to enjoy the occasion, the crowd. It was my first time playing on a court that big. I am enjoying this moment, and I am enjoying playing on grass. I am very happy.”

<img alt=”Francisco Comesana” style=”width: 100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/07/03/11/36/comesana-wimbledon-2024-feature.jpg” />

_{^{Francisco Comesana celebrates his win against Andrey Rublev. Photo Credit: Henry Nicholls/AFP via Getty Images}}

2) Australian Open R2: Cazaux d Rune 7-6(4), 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
Sometimes the journey is more significant than the end result.

Arthur Cazaux’s upset of eighth seed Holger Rune in the Australian Open second round was certainly a shock: The 21-year-old Frenchman, competing as a wild card, was chasing just his third tour-level win. Yet it was the way that Cazaux dismantled Rune inside Margaret Court Arena that particularly caught the eye.

The World No. 122 combined clean baseline hitting and crafty slice play with some scintillating court coverage to overwhelm Rune and complete the biggest win of his career. After sealing victory with a classy backhand pass, it didn’t take long for the enraptured crowd to learn just how highly Cazaux valued his role as an entertainer.

“It’s a show. The tennis is a show,” said Cazaux when asked about his game style in his on-court interview, before turning to the crowd. “I gave all I have in me, and I hope you enjoyed the show. We have the best crowd in France, but the Aussie crowd is crazy.”

Giant slayer ⚔️

On his @AustralianOpen debut, Arthur Cazaux knocks out No. 8 seed Holger Rune to advance to the third round.#AusOpenpic.twitter.com/2Osj5q17ID

— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 18, 2024

1) US Open R2: Van de Zandschulp d Alcaraz 6-1, 7-5, 6-4
A tough 2024 for Botic van de Zandschulp sparked into life in spectacular fashion on a memorable Thursday night at the US Open.

The Dutchman entered the hard-court major with an 11-18 tour-level record for the season. After defeating Denis Shapovalov in the first round in New York, Van de Zandschulp stepped on court for his second-round clash with World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz aiming to win back-to-back tour-level matches for the first time in over nine months.

Yet Van de Zandschulp appeared to have little trouble putting his struggles for wins behind him inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, where he produced a rock-solid display full of expertly controlled aggression from the baseline. Alcaraz had not lost a set in his two previous Lexus ATP Head2Head clashes with Van de Zandschulp, but the Spaniard had no answer to the way his opponent disrupted his rhythm throughout the encounter.

“I’m a little bit lost for words. It’s been an incredible evening, the first night session for me on Arthur Ashe. The crowd was amazing,” said Van de Zandschulp, whose straight-sets win was the biggest of his career by PIF ATP Ranking. “I got a lot of confidence from my last match [against Shapovalov]. I played really solid and from point one tonight, I believed I could have a chance, and you see how it sometimes turns out.”

<img alt=”Carlos Alcaraz/Botic van de Zandschulp” style=”width: 100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/12/03/01/08/alcaraz-van-de-zandschulp-us-open-2024-handshake.jpg” />

_{^{Carlos Alcaraz congratulates Botic van de Zandschulp at the US Open. Photo Credit: Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images}}

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My Influences: Why does del Potro have a special place in Basavareddy’s heart?

Nishesh Basavarredy finished the 2024 season on fire, winning two ATP Challenger Tour titles and reaching a further three finals since October. The American’s reward is a qualification spot at this month’s Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, to be held from 18-22 December.

Ahead of the 20-and-under event in Jeddah, the 19-year-old opened the lid on those who have inspired him in his journey to this landmark moment. Basavareddy shares his admiration for Carlos Alcaraz, Brandon Nakashima and Juan Martin del Potro and delves into his relationship with Rajeev Ram.

Learn more about Basavarredy in the latest feature for our Next Gen ‘My Influences’ series.

Which former Next Gen champion do you most identify with?
I would say I looked up to Alcaraz in the past couple of years. He has done it at such a young age it has been incredible. It is incredible how quickly he shot up the rankings. That is something that other guys can’t do but it has been inspiring to see how quickly he has moved up and all the success he has.

Can you recall the first time watching Alcaraz?
I remember the first time watching him play was against Jannik Sinner in a Challenger. I remember a lot of people talking about it. He beat Tsitsipas at the US Open later that year and he was only 18 years old. That was a pretty crazy match from a teenager and he has now been a mainstay in the Top 3. I remember the Wimbledon final in 2023 against Djokovic. That was a crazy match and sticks out to me.

Read more from our Influences series

Do you have a good relationship with any of the other former Next Gen champions?
I know Brandon Nakashima a little bit and he worked with a coach who helped out in Stanford a bit. I was able to hit with him in Stanford a bit last year and he is a really nice, humble guy. He had an unbelievable year this year, improved a lot and finished the year in the Top 40 [in the PIF ATP Rankings], so that is really cool to see. I like his game a lot and the way he is an all-court player.

Which former Next Gen champ do you most identify with regarding your game?
Maybe Chung. I don’t move as well as him but he has a slightly better backhand than forehand. A bit of a counter-puncher and he can come into the net and he played a bit like Djokovic with his backhand, so that is something I admire.

Alex Michelsen and Learner Tien will both be in Jeddah too. How close are you to those guys?
I grew up with Learner. We played together for the first time when I was six years old, so he is a good friend. Same with Alex, I played with him since I was 10. I used to live in Southern California, so we were all there. We grew up in juniors together and were pretty close. Even Mensik and Jerry, I have known since 14 and have played juniors against them. It is cool seeing all their success and it will be fun to share a court with them on the big stage in Jeddah.

How motivating is to see the success previous players who have played Next Gen have had?
It is super motivating. It is a jump start for a lot of these guys. Seeing basically all the guys at the ATP Finals this year play at Next Gen Finals before is motivating. It shows something about the quality of the event.

Who were your other influences when growing up?
Rajeev has been a big influence. I have known him for 10 years. He has been really supportive in my jump from juniors to college to pro. He made that jump as well a while back. He gave me a lot of advice on what to expect on the Tour and how to improve my game. He has had so much success.

And then my family. My dad, my brother. They both got me into tennis. And Djokovic as he is my favourite player. Del Potro is also inspiring. I had a couple of injuries when growing up, a couple of knee surgeries, so it is inspiring to see him come back strong so many times.

What have you learned on the ATP Challenger Tour this year?
Everyone can play at this level, so it is important to be 100 per cent prepared for every match. I think mental preparation is super important because every match is going to be a fight. Playing week in, week out is also tough physically and a lot of these guys can last, so I need to improve in that area in the next year.

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Australian tennis legend Fraser dies at 91

Australian 19-time Grand Slam winner Neale Fraser dies aged 91.

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Sakamoto, 18, closes Challenger season in historic fashion

Japan’s Rei Sakamoto finished the 2024 season in perfect fashion Sunday when he made history in front of his home fans.

The 18-year-old won his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title and became the second-youngest Japanese winner at that level. Only Kei Nishikori, former World No. 4 in the PIF ATP Rankings, won a Challenger title at a younger age in 2008.

Sakamoto was competing as a wild card in just his sixth Challenger outing. The #NextGenATP teen downed German qualifier Christoph Negritu 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the final. Sakamoto, who won this year’s Australian Open boys’ singles title, is the third-youngest Challenger champion this season. Only Joao Fonseca and Joel Schwaerzler were younger when they lifted trophies.

Youngest Japanese Challenger Champions

Sakamoto’s triumph also caps a historic season for Japanese players on the Challenger Tour. Eight Japanese players combined for 10 Challenger titles this year, marking a record for the Asian country. Following Sakamoto’s title, he is up to a career-high No. 412 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

Sakamoto was not the only Challenger titlist to make history this past week. Hady Habib became the first Lebanese champion in Challenger history, with his victory at the
Challenger Dove Men+Care Temuco. Lebanon is the 85th different country or territory with a Challenger title.

<img alt=”Hady Habib is crowned champion at the Temuco Challenger.” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/12/02/16/46/habib-temucoch-2024.jpg?h=1080&w=1920″ />
^{Hady Habib is crowned champion at the Temuco Challenger. Credit: Challenger Dove Men+Care Temuco}

Habib, 26, survived Argentine Camilo Ugo Carabelli 6-4, 6-7(3), 7-6(2) in a thrilling two-hour, 34-minute final. The former Texas A&M University standout held his nerve despite failing to serve out the championship match at 6-4, 5-4.

“Right now I think I have the biggest dopamine rush that I think I’ve had the entire year. Finishing the year like this is incredible, making history for my country,” Habib said. “I’m at a loss for words.”

Damir Dzumhur won a season-leading sixth Challenger title at the Maia Open, where he raced past Italian Francesco Passaro 6-3, 6-4 in the final. Dzumhur dropped the opening set of his campaign and rarely looked back to collect his 14th Challenger crown.

“It was the best possible finish to the year for me,” Dzumhur said. “I’m so happy. It means a lot to me. Probably one of the results that I can say means the most for me in my career. Winning ATP tournaments is a great feeling, playing Grand Slams with the big players, winning against some great players is a great feeling, but once you are coming back, you appreciate everything more. This is why I appreciate this result even more.”

<img alt=”Damir Dzumhur in action at the Maia Challenger.” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/12/02/16/44/dzumhur-maiach-2024.jpg” />
^{Damir Dzumhur in action at the Maia Challenger. Credit: FPT/Maia Open}

The 32-year-old Dzumhur will finish the season inside the Top 100 of the PIF ATP Rankings, which he returned to in August for the first time in four years.

German Mats Rosenkranz triumphed at the Manzanillo Open in Mexico to claim his first Challenger title. The 26-year-old was competing in just his third tournament at that level this season. Rosenkranz defeated Gonzalo Oliveira 6-3, 6-4 in the title match and rose 109 spots in the PIF ATP Rankings, climbing to World No. 373.

<img alt=”Mats Rosenkranz celebrates winning the Manzanillo Challenger.” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/12/02/16/40/rozenkranz-manzanilloch-2024.jpg” />
^{Mats Rosenkranz celebrates winning the Manzanillo Challenger. Credit: Toño Torres Téllez}

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Italy to host Davis Cup Final 8 from 2025

After clinching Davis Cup glory in 2023 and 2024, Italy’s connection with the historic teams event has been further strengthened by the news that the European country will host the Final 8 knockout stage from 2025 through 2027.

The Final 8 is the pinnacle of the Davis Cup, which is staged annually and in which 157 countries competed in 2024. Last month, the No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings Jannik Sinner inspired Italy to its third Davis Cup crown (1976, 2023, 2024) with victory in Malaga, Spain.

David Haggerty, ITF President, said: “We are delighted to partner with the FITP for the Davis Cup Final 8. Italy has a rich history in tennis and a proven ability to host world-class sporting events.

“We would like to thank Malaga and Andalusia, as well as Tennium and ITF member nation the Real Federación Española de Tenis (RFET) for being such great partners in helping us to elevate the event to new heights these past three years. We are confident that over the next three years working with the FITP we can take the Davis Cup even higher, providing an unforgettable experience for players and fans alike.”

Italian tennis has enjoyed a surge in recent years. As well as Sinner, who became the first Italian No. 1 in PIF ATP Rankings history in June, five other Italians finished 2024 inside the Top 50 of the PIF ATP Rankings: Lorenzo Musetti, Flavio Cobolli, Matteo Berrettini, Matteo Arnaldi and Luciano Darderi.

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Djokovic, Sinner, Alcaraz to play for charity across 2025 AO ‘Opening Week’

Fans won’t have to wait for the start of competitive Australian Open action to see some of the world’s biggest names on court in Melbourne this January.

The No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings Jannik Sinner, record-10-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic and four-time Grand Slam titlist Carlos Alcaraz are among those who will participate in charity matches as part of ‘Opening Week’ at the 2025 season’s first major.

Home favourites Alex de Minaur and Alexei Popyrin, as well as Hologic WTA Tour star and 2023 Australian Open finalist Qinwen Zheng, will also appear in the exhibition series, to be held from 7-10 January inside Rod Laver Arena. The matches will raise funds to support a range of children’s charities through the Australian Tennis Foundation.

The qualifying rounds for the first major of the 2025 season will also take place across ‘Opening Week’, from 6 to 11 January, before main-draw action kicks off on Sunday, 12 January.

World No. 1 Sinner is the defending men’s singles champion at Melbourne Park, where he lifted his maiden Grand Slam trophy at the 2024 edition of the event.

[NEWSLETTER FORM]

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#NextGenATP stars Mensik, Shang nominated for Newcomer of the Year

Jakub Mensik and Shang Juncheng both rocketed up the PIF ATP Rankings this season, rising more than 100 places to finish the year in the Top 50. The 19-year-olds are already comfortable on the game’s biggest stages, but they are just getting started.

Both nominees for Newcomer of the Year in the 2024 ATP Awards will close their seasons at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF in Jeddah. Before that showcase event, set to be played from 18-22 December, one of these rising stars will have another honour to his name. ATP Awards winners will be announced during Awards Week, starting Monday, 9 December.

Selected by players, the Newcomer of the Year award goes to the #NextGenATP player who entered the Top 100 for the first time in 2024 and made the biggest impact on the ATP Tour this season.

Jakub Mensik
On his way to his first ATP Tour final this February in Doha, Mensik beat Andy Murray, Andrey Rublev and Gael Monfils in consecutive matches. His victory against World No. 5 Rublev  made him the youngest player to earn a Top 5 win since Carlos Alcaraz beat Stefanos Tsitsipas at the 2021 US Open.

“The [Doha] week will be for me unforgettable,” Mensik said. “I think for the future, this tournament showed me that I can play with these players and that I can be soon on top.”

That run earned him his Top 100 breakthrough in the PIF ATP Rankings, and he continued his steady rise in the months that followed. After earning a win representing Czechia at the Olympics, Mensik achieved his best major result of the season by reaching the US Open third round — matching his result from his major debut the previous season in New York.

The month of October saw Mensik hit new heights behind two deep runs in Shanghai and Vienna. At the Rolex Shanghai Masters, he picked up two more Top 10 wins against Rublev and Grigor Dimitrov before taking an opening-set tie-break against Novak Djokovic in the quarters. In Vienna he again reached the quarter-finals, this time winning a first-set tie-break against Alex de Minaur before bowing out.

Those results helped him break into the Top 50 at World No. 48 and also secured his place in Jeddah, accomplishing one of his main goals for the season.

“Before the season, I set the goal to qualify for Jeddah and to play there,” Mensik told ATPTour.com in June. “It would be great to play this kind of event because for us young players it is pretty exciting. It is a good opportunity to see how it works and to taste something from the background of the ATP.”

Shang Juncheng
One of three Chinese players in the Top 100 of the PIF ATP Rankings, Shang made history this year in Chengdu by becoming the first player from the Asian nation to win an ATP Tour title on home soil. He earned a Top 20 win against Lorenzo Musetti in the final, handling the weight of his home fans like a veteran at the hard-court ATP 250.

“It’s really, really special for me, especially to do it at home” Shang said at the time. “Overall I’m just very happy to be here in Chengdu.”

His success there came eight months after a semi-final showing in Hong Kong to open the season and moved him to the brink of the Top 50. Boosted by his maiden title and deep tour-level runs this season in Eastbourne (quarter-finals) and Atlanta (semis), Shang reached a career high of World No. 47 in October — after more home success saw him reach the Rolex Shanghai Masters second round, where he squared off with Alcaraz in an entertaining stadium-court showdown.

All season, Shang has shown a penchant for pulling out wins at the game’s biggest events. He picked up four ATP Masters 1000 victories on the year and posted a 5-3 record at the Grand Slams, reaching the third round at both the Australian Open and the US Open for his joint-best major results.

To close his breakthrough season, the Chinese star has earned a chance to compete at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF. Like Mensik, Shang is excited to grace the stage where the likes of Jannik Sinner, Alcaraz and Stefanos Tsitsipas have all featured as champions.

“I’ve had an amazing year and the Next Gen ATP Finals is very important for my future,” Shang said in ATPTour.com’s new ‘Journey To Jeddah’ series. “In that event, all the tennis spotlight is on you because you know there are only eight players.”

His qualification for Jeddah made more history for Chinese tennis: Shang is the first player from his nation to qualify for the 20-and-under showpiece.

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