The 2019 season will always be one to remember for Nitto ATP Finals champion Stefanos Tsitsipas, and not just because of his success on the court.

Tsitsipas met his idol, former World No. 1 Pete Sampras, for the first time at Indian Wells. The Greek and his family got to briefly chat with Sampras, an American of Greek origin with whom he happens to share a birthday.

“That (dreaming) face you make when you meet the first guy that you’ve ever watched play tennis on TV. The person that made you want to go out at the tennis courts in the beach, made you dream about playing on all of the big stages and arenas around the world, winning trophies and titles, becoming an inspiration for others,” Tsitsipas wrote on Instagram. “Despite being at the end of his career, my childhood was filled with @petesamprasofficial matches and battles that I will never forget. This person has given me courage and eagerness to pursue my dream. A dream that felt insanely difficult to reach.

“It’s an honour to be standing next to you Pete. Thank you for filling my childhood with enthusiasm, hope, hard work ethic and… for me to play tennis in the first place. You are an inspiration up to this day, and I hope and inspiration for many generations to come.”

Sampras may have played under the United States flag, but he inspired Greek children like Tsitsipas. Stefanos’ brother, Petros Tsitsipas — who will help Stefanos lead Team Greece in the inaugural ATP Cup next month — is named after Sampras, according to an Instagram post.

With Tsitsipas’ increasing success — he just lifted the biggest title of his career at the Nitto ATP Finals — there will be plenty of people inspired to try to follow in his footsteps. That doesn’t add pressure for the Greek, though. It makes him even more excited for his journey to come.

“I’m super hungry to win matches and get up in the ATP Rankings, to be the best in my country. Pressure about leading Greece? Never,” Tsitsipas wrote in a first-person essay for ATPTour.com. “It’s very motivating to be the one who can create history in Greece and have kids look up to me later. They, like my parents did after my early losses, can be the ones chasing after me and shouting my name. I can inspire them and be the leader of tennis in Greece.”

Top 10 Greek Players In History By ATP Ranking

One player who Tsitsipas has motivated is Greek No. 2 Michail Pervolarakis, who will be the country’s second singles player when Greece faces Russia, the United States and Norway in Brisbane in Group D action.

“He’s a really nice guy, so overall it’s just an amazing experience being with him. We talk sometimes. I actually just had a baby, I send him pictures of my baby sometimes,” Pervolarakis told ATPTour.com. “[He has] a very big impact [in Greece]. Everyone now is watching tennis in the most random places. Instead of soccer or basketball they’re watching tennis and the [Nitto] ATP Finals or Grand Slams. I think those kids want to play and connect with Stefanos. They want to start and see what the sport is all about. It’s just becoming bigger in general as a sport.”

Pervolarakis began this season unranked, but he has climbed as high as No. 433 in the ATP Rankings. Part of Pervolarakis’ success this year has come from motivation after watching his countryman compete — and in many instances, beat — the best players in the world.

“It’s really motivating to see what he’s able to achieve. He broke into the Top 100 and that was amazing and now he’s No. 6 in the world,” Pervolarakis said. “I don’t think he has limits. It’s really motivating to me to see that somebody from my country is able to play at such a high level.”

The 23-year-old will now get to compete alongside his countryman. After meeting Tsitsipas earlier this year, he won’t just get to watch the Greek on television, but cheer him on from just feet away and potentially even play doubles with him. Pervolarakis follows Tsitsipas from afar, watching his matches as much as he can.

And now because of Tsitsipas’ success, Pervolakis has a big opportunity to compete on what promises to be one of the sport’s biggest stages, with an entire country behind him.

“Obviously it’s the biggest tournament I’ve ever played and probably will play next year. So being in a tournament with the top guys in the world, the top tennis players, playing as a teammate as Stefanos, that will be an amazing experience for me,” Pervolarakis said. “Also, it’s a new event, and I think it’s really cool. Obviously you represent your country in every event, but in this one specifically you’re a team and you have opponents from different countries. I think people are really going to enjoy this tournament.”

Tsitsipas has already competed under the spotlight against the world’s best. But the Greek knows the inaugural ATP Cup provides a special chance for him to not just play against the best players in the world, but to do it for his country.

“We all have something extra inside of ourselves,” Tsitsipas said. “We’re playing for the country, which makes it very important for us.”

Three months ago, Roberto Maytin lifted up an ATP Challenger Tour doubles title in California. The 30-year-old Venezuelan is now focussed on his health after revealing he was diagnosed with testicular cancer.

Maytin made the announcement in an Instagram post on 21 November. His family also set up a GoFundMe page to help cover his medical expenses. Maytin said he will undergo chemotherapy treatments and vowed to return to professional tennis.

“After four long days in the hospital, coming to this with the intention of routine checkups, doctors detected a testicular cancer named Germ Cell Tumor (non-seminoma),” Maytin wrote. “They intervened yesterday… Now I feel stable and I only wait for the chemotherapy sessions that will be done to me to end this 100%. For now, I will be in another fight with the support of my family and friends, and with God always by my side, returning to my routine very soon!”

Maytin is currently No. 136 in the ATP Doubles Rankings. He’s won 14 ATP Challenger Tour doubles titles, including four this season, and reached an ATP Tour doubles final at 2017 Los Cabos (w/Galdos).

On 14 May 2017, World No. 29 Fabio Fognini played then-21-year-old Matteo Berrettini in the first round of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia. On paper, the match was not memorable. Fognini advanced past the World No. 249 6-1, 6-3 in 71 minutes, and he’d go on to upset then-World No. 1 Andy Murray in straight sets in the next round.

For the Italians in attendance, though, this was a glimpse into their country’s men’s tennis future. And according to a smiling Berrettini, he did not get off to a great start that day.

“I started the match with a double fault,” Berrettini recalled. “[It was] so slow in the net. I was, like, ‘Okay’.”

Little did either man know that two years later, they both would crack the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings and position themselves to make Italy one of the favourites heading into the inaugural ATP Cup from 3-12 January.

Before this season, only two Italian men had ever broken into the Top 10 — Adriano Panatta in 1973 and Corrado Barazzutti in 1978 — and that was more than four decades ago. That made Fognini and Berrettini’s breakthroughs in 2019 even more special.

”It is crazy, because we had to wait a lot,” said Berrettini. “Fabio won a crazy tournament [in Monte-Carlo], he was playing so good. He was looking for this achievement a bit longer than me, he [has had] a really great career. After winning an ATP Masters 1000 ATP Cup: How Berrettini & Fognini Have Led The Rise Of Italian Tennis, the Top 10 is the next step, so I was happy for him and now I am super proud of myself.”

But it’s not just Berrettini and Fognini who have thrust Italy into the spotlight. At the time of that match in Rome, there were just three Italians inside the Top 100. Now there are eight, including Lorenzo Sonego, Marco Cecchinato, Andreas Seppi, Jannik Sinner, Stefano Travaglia and Salvatore Caruso. The eight are tied for the third-most of any country, alongside the United States and trailing only France (12) and Spain (10).

Berrettini, Fognini, Travaglia, Paolo Lorenzi and Simone Bolelli will try to help Italy advance out of Group D in Perth come January.

“When you are playing for your country with a team, it’s different,” Berrettini said. “You can find, I think, more energy.”

Lorenzi, who turns 38 on 15 December, has fallen just outside the Top 100 at No. 116. But the 21-time ATP Challenger Tour titlist remains a guiding force for some of the Italians making their rise. At this year’s US Open, Lorenzi found out he would receive a lucky loser spot while he was spending time with Berrettini, an eventual semi-finalist. On many days he practised with Sinner, a player who is less than half his age.

“I always like to practise a lot with the young Italians because they have a lot of enthusiasm,” Lorenzi said. “I like to play with the young ones and I can know some good young Italians that are coming.”

Sinner is at the forefront of that charge. The teenager was outside the Top 750 in the ATP Rankings this time last year. After earning his first 11 tour-level wins this year, Sinner is up to a career-high No. 78. Following a rout of Top 20 star Alex de Minaur to triumph at the Next Gen ATP Finals, the Italian looks poised to climb higher in 2020 and beyond.

According to countryman Seppi, who has spent only about two months outside the Top 100 since May 2005, Sinner’s rise only adds to the excitement that Berrettini and Fognini produced for Italian tennis this year.

“It’s actually what every nation wants to see, a good young player coming up with a really big potential, winning a Slam. He’s still 18, anything can happen. But his potential can be really big for a long time, Top 10 and everything,” Seppi said. “It’s nice to see someone that good from your area, and maybe it could be also that we helped in the past years, for him to see us, that he can do it. So I think that is also an important thing.”

Two of the top three Under-18 players in the ATP Rankings — World No. 362 Lorenzo Musetti and No. 383 Giulio Zeppieri — are also on their way up. But Sinner points to the bigger picture of all Italian men stepping up and how that is impacting the younger generations.

“Even at a higher level like [with] Berrettini, Sonego, we are now very high [in the ATP Rankings] and many players are playing very good tennis this year and I think if there are many young generation in Italy, it’s very important,” Sinner said. “But I’m very happy how it’s going on with Italian tennis.”

This Italian rise is fitting with the Nitto ATP Finals set to move to Turin starting in 2021. And with the ATP Cup around the corner, Italian tennis is flying as high as ever.

“It is a very good year for Italian tennis, two guys breaking into the Top 10 with Fabio and Matteo after so many years,” Seppi said. “For sure it is a very special year for Italian tennis.”

Continuing our Season In Review series, ATPTour.com looks at the top five comebacks in Grand Slam matches in 2019.

5. Aljaz Bedene d. Benoit Paire, US Open, Second Round (Match Stats)
Aljaz Bedene had never reached the third round in New York and would need to defeat a player he often struggled with in Benoit Paire. The Frenchman led their FedEx ATP rivalry 4-1 and was in the middle of an outstanding season, having won ATP Tour titles in Marrakech (d. Andujar) and Lyon (d. Auger-Aliassime).

Paire served for the match at 5-3 in the fourth set and earned triple match point, but hit a backhand into the net on his first chance. The missed opportunity set off an avalanche of unforced errors and Bedene shockingly won 15 of the next 17 points to bring the match into a decider.

The Frenchman regrouped and raced to a 3-0 lead in the fifth set, but Bedene refused to give in. He scored a break at 2-4 and twice served to stay in the match, sending their clash into a final-set tie-break. The Slovenian’s steady baseline play brought him over the line after a backhand error from Paire wrapped up a 4-6, 6-7(3), 6-2, 7-5, 7-6(4) win after four hours and three minutes.

Bedene fell to Alexander Zverev in an entertaining four-set battle, but rode the momentum to his first tour-level final of the season just three weeks later in Metz (l. to Tsonga).

4. Marin Cilic d. Fernando Verdasco, Australian Open, Third Round (Match Stats)
Marin Cilic and Fernando Verdasco have quietly put together one of the most prolific rivalries on the ATP Tour. Their first FedEx ATP Head2Head match took place in 2007 St. Petersburg (won by Verdasco) and they’ve faced off in 11 of the past 13 seasons. But Cilic walked into Margaret Court Arena with the upper hand in their rivalry (9-5) and had won their past four meetings.

Verdasco appeared ready to turn the tables and held match point at 7/6 in the fourth-set tie-break, but Cilic erased it with a service winner. The crowd gasped as Verdasco then let slip a second match point with a double fault at 8/7. Two points later, a forehand winner from Cilic tied up the score.

The Croatian promptly broke Verdasco and sprinted to a 3-0 lead in the final set. At 12:57 am, he pumped his fist after a forehand error from Verdasco brought him a 4-6, 3-6, 6-1, 7-6(8), 6-3 victory after four hours and 18 minutes. Cilic fired 66 winners en route to prevailing from two sets down for the seventh time in his career.

Cilic lost an entertaining five-set battle in the fourth round to Roberto Bautista Agut and struggled to meet his lofty standards throughout the season. He recorded only one tour-level semi-final (Moscow) and finished the year at No. 39 in the ATP Rankings, but is hard at work in the off-season to climb back up in 2020.

3. Nicolas Mahut d. Marco Cecchinato, Roland Garros, First Round (Match Stats)
Nicolas Mahut was so discouraged about his tennis and fitness prior to Roland Garros that he nearly gave back his wild card. The 37-year-old Frenchman was outside the Top 250 of the ATP Rankings for the first time since 2003 and injuries had limited him to six singles appearances in 2019, most of which were ATP Challenger Tour events on home soil. A back injury convinced Mahut that he should withdraw, but his team persuaded him to rest and the injury gradually improved.

He faced a challenging opening test against Marco Cecchinato, who made headlines with his semi-final run last year at this event and prevailed in February at the Argentina Open (d. Schwartzman). Mahut dropped the first two sets and did not have history on his side, with a 1-38 record after losing the first two sets in the main draw of a Grand Slam.

But with the Parisian crowd unwavering in their support, Mahut dug deep to get himself into the match. After three hours and 18 minutes, Mahut put his hands over his head in disbelief after a backhand sent wide from Cecchinato wrapped up a stunning 2-6, 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 upset. The match marked Mahut’s first Top 20 win at Roland Garros. 

“For the moment, I’m just enjoying the pleasure of this victory. It is by far my best victory in Roland Garros, in a French tournament. I haven’t had many,” Mahut said. “Playing on this extraordinary court, I felt that if there was a possibility of playing on this court, it would be incredible and there would be an incredible atmosphere.”

Mahut followed up with a win over Philipp Kohlschreiber, matching his best result at this event, before falling to Leonardo Mayer in four sets. The Frenchman only won two tour-level singles matches after his inspired week in Paris, but enjoyed success in doubles that included titles at the Nitto ATP Finals and Rolex Paris Masters (w/Herbert), in addition to a runner-up finish at Wimbledon (w/Roger-Vasselin).

Read More: Mahut Earns ‘By Far His Best Victory’ In Paris

2. Hyeon Chung d. Fernando Verdasco, US Open, Second Round (Match Stats)
Hyeon Chung endured a frustrating series of injuries after reaching his maiden Grand Slam semi-final at the 2018 Australian Open. He arrived in New York in the early stages of another comeback after missing six months due to a back injury. The South Korean was forced to qualify for the final Grand Slam of the year, but powered into the main draw without dropping a set and scored a five-set win in his opening round against Ernesto Escobedo. 

It appeared the volume of matches would be too much for Chung after he dropped the first two sets in 58 minutes during his second-round clash with Fernando Verdasco. But as Chung mounted a comeback and eventually forced a fifth set, Court 10 became standing room only and the crowd were largely on his side. 

Verdasco broke Chung for a 3-1 lead in the decider and served for the match at 5-3, but the two-time US Open quarter-finalist pushed a forehand volley long to bring the match back on serve. As the crowd roared in approval, the normally mild-mannered Chung threw his arms up in the air and encouraged them to make more noise.

Chung saved a match point on his serve at 5-6 and then stormed through the tie-break to complete an incredible 1-6, 2-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6(3) comeback after three hours and 22 minutes. The South Korean spent a minute under seven hours on court in his first two rounds, proving he was fully recovered from his back injury.

Chung fell to eventual champion Rafael Nadal in the third round, but went on to score high-profile wins over Cillic and Milos Raonic in the latter stages of the season. With only 45 ATP Rankings points to defend until July, he’s primed to make a significant climb next year.

1. Kei Nishikori d. Pablo Carreno Busta, Australian Open, Fourth Round (Match Stats)
Kei Nishikori’s journey into the second week cemented his status as Melbourne’s marathon man. He survived a pair of five-set matches in his first two rounds, rallying from two sets down against Kamil Majchrzak and then defeating Ivo Karlovic in a fifth-set tie-break.

After Pablo Carreno Busta prevailed in the first two sets and broke Nishikori for a 3-2 lead in the third set, it seemed that the hours on court had finally taken their toll on the Japanese. But Nishikori clawed back to take the third set and found the range on his serve, scoring three love holds in the fourth set en route to forcing a decider.

The vocal crowd watched as Nishikori broke for a 2-1 lead in the final set, but he got tight when serving for the match at 5-4 and gifted the break back to the Spaniard. The battle eventually reached what was just the third final-set tie-break in tournament history for men’s singles.

Carreno Busta was rewarded for taking the initiative in their baseline rallies and grabbed a commanding 8/5 lead, but Nishikori charged back and won the last five points of the match. The Japanese star finished with an ace — his 15th of the match — to improve to 21-7 in five-setters.

“I don’t even know how I came back,” Nishikori said. “But [I’m] very happy to win today.”

At five hours and five minutes, Nishikori and Carreno Busta put on the fifth-longest Open Era match in tournament history. Nishikori finished the night with a staggering 81 winners to 57 unforced errors. 

After 18 sets of tennis in a week, his body surrendered and he retired due to injury midway through the second set of his quarter-final with Novak Djokovic. Nishikori’s injury woes resurfaced when a right elbow injury shut down his season after the US Open. He underwent surgery for the injury in October, but expects to be ready to start next season by representing Japan in the inaugural ATP Cup, held in Australia from 3-12 January.

Nicolas Jarry has hired Dante Bottini as his new coach in a bid to reach even greater heights next year. The Chilean started working this week with Bottini, who was part of Kei Nishikori’s team for nine years, and will spend his preseason at the IMG Academy in Florida.

“I am very happy to start working with Dante. He has great experience at the highest level and I hope to learn as much as I can from him,” Jarry said. “I will do my best to continue improving and growing as a tennis player. I start this new stage in my career with total commitment to work hard every day.”

Jarry reached a career-high ATP Ranking of No. 38 this July after winning his maiden ATP Tour crown in Bastad (d. Londero). He also finished runner-up in Geneva (l. to Zverev) and scored his first Top 5 win against Alexander Zverev en route to a quarter-final showing in Barcelona.

The 24-year-old will kick off next season by representing Chile in the ATP Cup, held in Australia from 3-12 January. He’ll look to lead the Chilean squad past Serbia, France and South Africa in Group A play, to be held in Brisbane.

One of the final six teams to qualify for the inaugural ATP Cup was Poland, led by Hubert Hurkacz. The 22-year-old was just inside the Top 400 in the ATP Rankings two years ago. But now, he is his country’s top-ranked player at World No. 37.

Hurkacz will lead the Polish charge against Argentina, Austria and Croatia in Group E play, to be held in Sydney. The 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals qualifier speaks to ATPTour.com about the pro from Poland who he got to spend time with at a young age, what it means to represent his country, and more.

What are some of your early memories playing tennis in your country?
I remember being on the court hitting some balls. I was very young and I had a bigger racquet. I loved competing. Playing all those matches and tournaments was a lot of fun for me.

What was it like to have your mom as a role model, since she was a junior tennis champion in Poland?
Yeah, of course. I looked up to her. I knew that she was good, so [I thought] I could also be quite good.

Which Polish players did you look up to growing up?
When I was older there was a friend of mine, Michal Przysiezny, who was in the Top 100. When I was 14, 15, I used to do fitness with him, which was nice. I was asking him some questions. It was good for me to have someone close to me who was very high in the ATP Rankings and that also gave me motivation.

When you first met Michal, how exciting was that for you as you were a junior dreaming of being a professional tennis player?
I looked at it that he’s a really great player. I wanted to become as good or even better than him.

How excited are you to help Poland qualify for the first ATP Cup?
That is unbelievable for us to qualify and we can play in this event. That is really nice.

What’s the coolest part about the event?
I think it’s a great timing at the beginning of the year. It’s played in Australia, so before the Australian Open we are able to play for our countries and we compete against each other, so that’s a fun part.

What do you like about being on a team?
It’s very nice because all the people you are around give you support, so it’s a little different than most of the time when you’re alone with your coaches, with your teams, but you don’t have that extra support from players.

Poland has another singles player who was in the Top 100 this year in Kamil Majchrzak, a doubles star in Lukasz Kubot. Do you spend a lot of time with the other Polish players on the road?
When we have a chance, when we play the same events, we spend some time together. It’s always fun to speak some Polish and know there are some other players from my country.

Is there a shot from another Polish player you’d want to add to your game and why?
Kubot has a great return. He hits it full power, clean and he gets a lot of advantages when he plays it so well.

What do you love about Poland?
It’s a great country. I love being there and the atmosphere. I grew up there, it brings me memories and my mind is always relaxed being there.

When you’re on the road, what reminds you of home?
Tough to say. Travelling, I am thinking about the tournaments and matches and all the stuff around. Speaking to my friends really is what reminds me of Poland.

How important is it to you to inspire Polish children?
That would be amazing. I hope in the future I’ll do some bigger results and inspire a lot of children to play tennis because it’s a really fun sport and I really enjoy it.

Travelling and seeing all these places and being at the great events and winning trophies in the future, that’s something really special. It’s a great way to live your life, so you can do something good after your career as well.

How much do you want to be a role model for them?
It’s tough to think that way. Obviously if I do good things then I hope they take something from those good things.

Continuing our Season In Review series, ATPWorldTour.com looks at the top five comebacks in ATP matches in 2019.

5. Andreas Seppi d. Zhizhen Zhang, Huajin Securities Zhuhai Championships, Second Round (Match Stats)
Fans in Zhuhai had quickly rallied around Zhang. The rising Chinese player won his first ATP Challenger Tour title that month in Jinan, then scored his first Top 100 victory in two years with an opening-round win over Dominik Koepfer.

Zhang led Seppi 6/2 in the third-set tie-break, but the Italian refused to give up. He produced the shot of the tournament at 6/4, ending a 28-shot rally with a one-handed backhand passing shot on the run. Seppi converted his second match point to complete an astonishing 7-6(4), 4-6, 7-6(8) victory in two hours and 44 minutes.

The 35-year-old lost in the quarter-finals to Roberto Bautista Agut, but went on to score his first Top 10 win of the year against Karen Khachanov for a semi-final finish at the VTB Kremlin Cup. Zhang picked up another tour-level win the following week at the China Open and concluded his season with an ATP Challenger Tour title in Shenzhen, finishing at a career-high No. 139 in the ATP Rankings.

4. Roberto Bautista Agut d. Novak Djokovic, Miami Open presented by Itau, Fourth Round (Match Stats)
Bautista Agut opened the season by rallying from a set and a break down to defeat Djokovic en route to taking the title at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open (d. Berdych). But the World No. 1 still arrived for their match in Miami as the on-paper favourite and held a 7-2 lead in their FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry. Djokovic also had plenty of success in Miami to draw on as a six-time champion.

Just like their Doha clash, Bautista Agut trailed by a set and a break as Djokovic raced to a 6-1, 1-0 lead. The Spaniard worked his way into the match, breaking back in the next game and winning eight of the last 11 points in the set to force a decider.

Bautista Agut continued his outstanding form in return games during the final set. He broke twice and won 11 of 21 points on Djokovic’s serve to score a 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 upset after two hours and 29 minutes. 

“I played more aggressive. I tried to miss fewer balls, to be really concentrated on the beginning of the point with my serve, with my return. At the end, it worked well,” Bautista Agut said after the match.

Bautista Agut fell to defending champion John Isner in the quarter-finals, but used his momentum from Miami to produce his best season on Tour. He reached his maiden Grand Slam semi-final at Wimbledon and finished the year with a career-high ATP Ranking of No. 9.

Watch Highlights: Bautista Agut Upsets Djokovic In Miami

3. Fabio Fognini d. Andrey Rublev, Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, First Round (Match Stats)
Fognini arrived in Monte-Carlo desperate for matches after producing a 4-8 record to begin the year. It appeared that the slump would continue after Rublev charged to a 6-4, 4-1 lead in their Day 1 clash.

Rublev racked up five break points for a 5-1 advantage, but Fognini erased them all as the Russian’s nerves took over. Fognini went on a three-game run at 4-5 to level the match, then scored the lone break of the decider at 1-1 to prevail 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 in two hours and 30 minutes.

The comeback sparked the best week of Fognini’s career. He took out Alexander Zverev, Borna Coric and Rafael Nadal before defeating Dusan Lajovic for his first ATP Masters 1000 crown. Two months later, the 32-year-old made his debut inside the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings.

Despite the loss, Rublev went on to produce stellar results in the second half of the year. He prevailed on home soil in Moscow (d. Mannarino), upset Dominic Thiem en route to a runner-up finish at the Hamburg European Open (l. to Basilashvili) and shocked Roger Federer for his first Masters 1000 quarter-final at the Western & Southern Open. 

Read More: Fognini Reflects On Winning Monte-Carlo

2. Lorenzo Sonego d. Federico Delbonis, Generali Open Kitzbühel, First Round (Match Stats)
Sonego isn’t new to producing come from behind victories. He saved a championship point against Miomir Kecmanovic to win his maiden ATP Tour crown this June at the Turkish Airlines Open Antalya. But the 24-year-old Italian took the art of the comeback to new heights in Kitzbühel against Delbonis.

Sonego fought back from 0-4 to take the opening set in a tie-break, but he was just getting started. Delbonis held four match points with Sonego serving at 4-5 in the final set, but the Italian erased all of them. Another four match points came and went with Sonego serving at 5-6 and their epic clash fittingly went to a final-set tie-break.

Delbonis was unable to recover mentally after squandering eight match points. Sonego charged through the tie-break to prevail 7-6(4), 6-7(4), 7-6(4) after three hours and 36 minutes, more than double the length he needed to win their maiden FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting that February at the Brasil Open. The seventh seed won seven fewer points than Delbonis, but emerged victorious in large part due to saving all eight break points he faced in the deciding set. 

The Italian went on to reach the semi-finals and finished the year at No. 52 in the ATP Rankings, climbing more than 60 spots from the beginning of the season.

Read More: 5 Things To Know About Sonego

1. Rafael Nadal d. Daniil Medvedev, Nitto ATP Finals, Round Robin (Match Stats)

Nadal arrived in London with two objectives: clinching the year-end No. 1 ATP Ranking and lifting his maiden title at the season-ending championships. After dropping his first match of the week to Alexander Zverev, the Spaniard’s clash with Medvedev was a must-win encounter if he wished to advance out of Group Andre Agassi.

The Russian raised his level in the final set and sprinted to a 4-0 lead. With Nadal serving at 1-5, 30/40, it appeared that Medvedev would pick up his first win at the season finale and 60th tour-level victory of the year. But, as Nadal has demonstrated countless times, he can’t be counted out.

Nadal bravely erased the match point with a delicate drop shot and eventually held serve. With the finish line in sight, Medvedev’s normally reliable shots betrayed him. From match point down, Nadal won 15 of the next 19 points to even the set at 5-5. 

Their battle eventually moved to a tie-break and Nadal struck in the final moments. With the Spaniard serving at 5/4, Medvedev coughed up a pair of baseline errors to give Nadal a 6-7(3), 6-3, 7-6(4) win after two hours and 47 minutes.

ASTONISHING FROM RAFA NADAL ?

Down 1-5 in the third set, @RafaelNadal saves a match point & completes a sensational comeback at the #NittoATPFinals!

?: @TennisTV pic.twitter.com/1bk5DYBTPs

— ATP Tour (@atptour) November 13, 2019

”I’ve been super lucky,” Nadal said. “Sorry for Daniil. It’s a tough loss. He was playing much better than me in the third set. It’s one of these days, one out of 1,000, where you win.”

Although Nadal didn’t advance out of round-robin action, he concluded his season by finishing as year-end No. 1 for the fifth time.

Novak Djokovic earned his first ATP Rankings points in July 2003. At the time, there were only two Serbians – Janko Tipsarevic (No. 147) and Boris Pashanski (No. 254) – in the Top 300 of the ATP Rankings.

But 17 years later, after Djokovic’s 77 tour-level titles, including 16 Grand Slams and 34 ATP Masters 1000s, it’s clear the effect Serbia’s top sportsman has had on his home country.

Serbia has five players inside the Top 60 of the ATP Rankings, behind only France (eight) and tied for second with Spain and the USA. Djokovic, at No. 2 in the ATP Rankings, leads the country and is the oldest among his compatriots in the Top 60.

The players who rose with Djokovic – Janko Tipsarevic and Viktor Troicki – have retired or fallen in the ATP Rankings. But Djokovic, at 32, remains in his prime and is leading the Next Generation of Serbian talent.

At next month’s ATP Cup, the Serbian team will be a blend of experience and youth as Djokovic will compete with Troicki (33 years old), Nikola Cacic (28), Nikola Milojevic (24) and Dusan Lajovic (29).

“I think it’s great for Serbian tennis,” Djokovic said of Lajovic’s 2019 play, which included his maiden title at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag. “I think it’s important that other players from Serbia are also doing really well in big tournaments. That inspires obviously many more younger tennis players to dream big.”

Serbians In The Top 60 Of 2018 Year-End ATP Rankings

Young Serbian players had plenty of inspiring moments to choose from in 2019. Djokovic won two Grand Slam titles (Australian Open, Wimbledon) and two Masters 1000 titles (Madrid, Paris). He finished just behind Rafael Nadal at No. 2 in the year-end ATP Rankings, his eighth Top 2 year-end finish.

Djokovic also played a contributing role in the other high moments. In February, Laslo Djere upset Dominic Thiem at the Rio Open presented by Claro and went onto win his maiden title at the ATP 500 event (d. Auger-Aliassime).

Djere said of Djokovic’s influence: “We know each other and always say a few words when we see each other at tournaments… He sent me a message when I reached the Top 100 [of the ATP Rankings] and called me to play doubles with him at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, when I was nowhere close to the Top 100. He’s a great guy and an inspiration to all of us.”

In March, #NextGenATP Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic, then 19, became the first lucky loser to reach the BNP Paribas Open quarter-finals in Indian Wells since the Masters 1000 series began in 1990. Kecmanovic was the last Serbian standing at an event Djokovic has dominated.

Kecmanovic finished his season at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan, becoming the first Serbian to compete at the event, which debuted in 2017.

For Kecmanovic, Djokovic has been the encouraging voice in his corner when things haven’t always gone as planned. “Obviously sometimes you don’t feel like doing anything. You feel like not practising or maybe quitting. And to hear him saying, ‘No, you have to keep going. Push through it,’ give some encouraging advice like that, I think that helped me a lot,” Kecmanovic said.

Lajovic, like Djere and Kecmanovic, compiled his best season yet on the ATP Tour. In addition to his title in Umag, the 29-year-old beat Thiem and Russian Daniil Medvedev to make his first Masters 1000 final at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters (l. to Fognini). At Roland Garros, Lajovic reached his third Round of 32 at a major championship.

“He hasn’t surprised me with the level of tennis on clay, because I knew that he has the ability to play at a really high level,” Djokovic said of Lajovic. “But to do it day after day at such a big tournament and to win against big players like Dominic Thiem is phenomenal, and I congratulate him for the great success.”

Filip Krajinovic struggled with expectations in 2018 after his surprise run to the 2017 Rolex Paris Masters final (l. to Sock). But the Serbian reached two more ATP Tour finals in 2019 – Budapest, Stockholm – and finished the season at No. 40 in the year-end ATP Rankings, only six off his 2017 year-end spot. He, like his peers, feels fortunate to have Djokovic representing Serbia.

“He’s amazing, one of the best ever. So it’s a pleasure, and we are so proud to have him. And, of course, he gives us advice. He went through all [these situations] like we are now. So we are very pleased and happy that we have Novak,” Krajinovic said.

Milojevic, who will compete alongside Djokovic at the ATP Cup, said Djokovic’s influence extends to every Serbian with a racquet.

“Since he became No. 1 and has done all these amazing things, things got better for the players back home. In terms of improving conditions to practise in Serbia and having a lot more courts to play on, we owe it all to him,” Milojevic told ATPTour.com.

But none of them know the secret to why Serbia has risen to the top of the tennis world. Or perhaps there is no secret at all: Just follow Djokovic’s example.

“It’s amazing that a small country like Serbia has so many good players,” Krajinovic said. “I don’t think there is any difference [between other countries]. We [are] just a small country, and we have a lot of very good sportsmen. And I think we do everything like other countries, I think. We [are] just strong and we work a lot. That’s it.”

Continuing our Season In Review series, ATPTour.com looks at the five biggest Grand Slam match upset in 2019.

5) Pierre-Hugues Herbert d. Daniil Medvedev, Roland Garros First Round, Paris, France, 27 May 2019 (Match Stats)
Daniil Medvedev had won eight of his first 10 matches on European clay this year, but two straight opening-round exits leading into Roland Garros meant the Russian, who later in the season would rip through the North American hard-court swing, was vulnerable for an upset. Pierre-Hugues Herbert, who’d turned his back on doubles in favour of singles competition after completing the career doubles Grand Slam with Nicolas Mahut at the Australian Open in January, was primed for the biggest win of his career on the second day in Paris.

Riding on the crest of a wave and buoyed by his French supporters, 28-year-old Herbert recovered from two-sets-to-love down and broke Medvedev in the penultimate game en route to his seventh tour-level victory against a player in the Top 20 of the ATP Rankings (7-24 lifetime). Falling to the ground in celebration, Herbert rightly savoured his 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 7-5 win over No. 12 seed Medvedev in three hours and 54 minutes on Court 14.

“It was one of the best, for sure,” said Herbert. “Maybe, emotion-wise, maybe the best, yes. The atmosphere was incredible… The crowd was incredible, [a] very precious help. I used the crowd. They pushed me in difficult moments. When you’re two sets down, it’s very difficult. It’s in part thanks to the crowd that I was able to win today.” Herbert lost 6-2, 6-2, 5-7, 6-7(6), 11-9 in the second round to fellow Frenchman Benoit Paire. 

4) Thomas Fabbiano d. Stefanos Tsitsipas, Wimbledon First Round, London, England, 1 July 2019 (Match Stats)
Stefanos Tsitsipas needed just over 90 minutes to beat Thomas Fabbiano in the 2018 Wimbledon third round, but what a difference a year makes. Fabbiano, who’d never won a set against a Top 20 opponent, sprung a stunning upset on day one at the All England Club, when the Italian showed no fear in a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 6-7(8), 6-3 win over sixth seed Tsitsipas in three hours and 22 minutes.

Tsitsipas, who let slip two match points at 6/7 and 7/8 in the fourth-set tie-break, looked set to rally in the decider on No. 2 Court, but instead of getting down on himself, Fabbiano remained calm, saving three break points in his first service game of the fifth set. Then from 2-3 down, the World No. 89 won the final four games of the match, breaking Tsitsipas’ serve twice, to move to 4-0 in fifth-set matches.

Greek Tsitsipas was scathing of his own performance, admitting, “People expected things from me. I didn’t deliver. When you get so much support, so much energy, so much positivity from everyone, and just ruin everything by yourself, it’s devastating… Last year his forehand was not the same. He improved a lot on his forehand. It’s very uncomfortable. You basically have to guess where he’s going to play. Last year was kind of easy, the easiest victory I had in Wimbledon. I played unbelievable in that match. Somehow, I didn’t manage to get even close to that level that I played last year. I just saw a more improved, more solid player than he was last year.” 

3) Grigor Dimitrov d. Roger Federer, US Open Quarter-finals, New York City, United States, 4 September 2019 (Match Stats) 

Grigor Dimitrov arrived at the US Open mired in one of the deepest slumps of his career, losing seven of his eight matches leading into the season’s final major. But the World No. 78 started to find his groove at Flushing Meadows and broke a seven-match losing streak against Roger Federer by coming back from two sets to one down to shock the five-time former champion  3-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2 for a place in the semi-finals.

“I think the past six, seven months have been pretty rough for me,” said Dimitrov, who’d won just two of 18 sets in previous matches against Federer. “But I had somebody to lean on, my friends, my family. I kept on believing again in the work, the rehab I had to put behind my shoulder, the exercise, the practice, fixing up the racquet a little bit. There were so many things I had to adjust in such a small but big period of time. Next thing you know, you’re almost [at the] end of the year, you have a result like that. It’s pretty special to me.” With victory in three hours and 45 minutes, Dimitrov became the lowest-ranked Grand Slam semi-finalist since Rainer Schuettler did so as World No. 94 at Wimbledon 11 years ago.

Federer started brightly to take a 3-0 lead, but Dimitrov made his key breakthrough when he broke for 4-2 in the second set. Federer broke twice in the third set to capture the momentum, but like in the second set, he was unable to get off to a quick start in the fourth, and that proved costly. After Dimitrov forced a decider, Federer left the court for a medical timeout as the Bulgarian did push-ups on his bench to stay warm. Dimitrov raced to a double break and 4-0 lead in the fifth set as Federer continued to make unforced errors, struggling to find a surge of energy. And finally, after holding to love, Dimitrov put his hands on his head and let out a massive roar after securing the win.

2) Guido Pella d. Milos Raonic, Wimbledon Fourth Round, London, England, 8 July 2019 (Match Stats)
On mown lawns, Milos Raonic’s senses always heighten and, this season, memories of a right knee injury that saw him miss the entire spring European clay-court swing, began to subside as he entered the Wimbledon fourth round with a 10-2 record on grass. The draw was opening up after Guido Pella beat the 2018 finalist and fourth seed Kevin Anderson in the third round, and fans pondered whether Raonic may make another deep run, as he did to the 2016 final. But Pella, who’d also upset former finalist Marin Cilic in the 2017 second round, had other ideas on No. 3 Court.

Through two sets, No. 15 seed Raonic didn’t face a break point and served for the match at 5-3 in the fourth set against Pella, who at the time was tied with Rafael Nadal with a tour-leading 21 clay-court match wins in 2019. But No. 26 seed Pella started to find his range with deep returns against the net-rushing Canadian and pulled away in the fourth set tie-break prior to Raonic erasing three match points while serving in the fifth set – 4-5, Ad Out; 5-6, 15/40. Pella eventually broke through for a 3-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(3), 8-6 victory when the Canadian sliced a backhand volley into the net to end the three-hour and 42-minute encounter.

“When I lost the third match point I wanted to cry,” said Pella, who’d never before advanced past the third round of a Grand Slam championship. “He was serving so good in those points that I couldn’t do anything. But I think I kept playing, kept fighting for every ball.”

It was the first time that Raonic had lost a match after winning the first two sets. The Canadian, who hit 80 winners, including 33 aces, and won 74 of 110 points at the net, said, “I wasn’t efficient and wasn’t able to play the way I needed to. He started getting in more points and I had to find a way to create like I did early on in the match.” 

1) Stefanos Tsitsipas d. Roger Federer, Australian Open Fourth Round, Melbourne, Australia, 20 January 2019 (Match Stats)
Tsitsipas declared himself “the happiest man on earth right now” after executing a rock-solid defence in beating six-time champion Federer, winner of the past two Australian Open titles, 6-7(11), 7-6(3), 7-5, 7-6(5) over three hours and 45 minutes.

Serving at 6-7(11), 4-5, Tsitsipas saved four set points and won the final four points of the second-set tie-break to even the match. The Greek, who’d won the Next Gen ATP Finals crown just two months earlier, had to bide his time before netting his first break points in the third set after two hours and 54 minutes of play. Once Tsitsipas received a quick massage of the thighs, to relieve cramp, after five games of the fourth set, he found his groove and while Federer forced a tie-break at 5/5, Tsitsipas struck a forehand winner en route to the best day of his career (to date).

“I have massive regrets tonight… I felt like I had to win the second set,” said Federer, who failed to convert any of his 12 break point opportunities. “I don’t care how I do it, but I had to do it.”

Tsitsipas, who struck 20 aces en route to becoming the youngest Australian Open quarter-finalist since Nick Kyrgios in 2015, admitted, “It was a very emotional moment. It was a beginning of something really big. I felt joy. I felt happiness. I felt a huge relief going out of my shoulders. That moment is definitely something that I will never, ever, ever forget. This match point is going to stay, I’m pretty much sure, forever, for the rest of my life.”