The ATP has announced a series of rule changes and innovations set to be trialled at the Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan this November. The season-ending tournament will see the world’s top 21-and-Under players of the season competing for total prize money of US$ 1.275 million from 7-11 November.

The rule changes, aimed at creating a high-tempo, cutting-edge, and TV-friendly product, are geared towards attracting new and younger fans into the sport, while at the same time retaining the sport’s traditional fan-base. The following rule changes will be applied in Milan:

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–    Shorter Format: First to Four games sets (Tie-Break at 3-All), Best-of-Five sets, with No-Ad scoring

•   Shorter set format designed to increase number of pivotal moments in a match, while the best-of-five set format does not alter the number of games required to win a match (12) from the traditional scoring format. No-Ad scoring will be played (receiver’s choice).

–    Shorter Warm-Up

•   Matches will begin precisely 5 minutes from the second player walk-on, leading to a reduction in down time before the beginning of matches.

–    Shot Clock

•   A shot clock will be used in between points to ensure strict regulation of the 25-second rule, as well as during set breaks, Medical Time-Outs, and the five-minute countdown from the player walk-on to the first point of the match.

–    No-Let Rule

•   The No-Let rule will apply to serves, bringing in an additional element of unpredictability at the start of points.
•   This rule will also remove any ambiguity over let calling from umpires, ensuring the rule is consistent with normal ‘let’ occurrences during regular point exchanges.

–    Medical Time-Outs

•   A limit of 1 medical time out per player per match.

–    Player Coaching

 •   Players and coaches will be able to communicate at certain points in the match (to be determined), providing additional content and entertainment value for broadcast. Coaches will not be allowed on-court.

In addition, a ‘free movement’ policy will be applied to the crowd (except behind the baselines) throughout the tournament. The policy will enable fans to move freely in and out of the stadium during matches, providing a relaxed fan-friendly atmosphere and ensuring fans are not restricted entry into the stadium at any time.

The ATP carried out extensive market research and fan surveys across more than 13 different markets through SMG Insight, covering off traditional and emerging tennis markets, as well as light and heavy tennis consumers, prior to determining which rule changes to trial at the inaugural tournament, which will take place at Fiera Milano in partnership with the Italian Tennis Federation and the Italian National Olympic Committee.

Chris Kermode, ATP Executive Chairman & President, said: “We’re excited to be bringing something new to the table with this event. The sports & entertainment landscape is changing rapidly, as are the ways in which fans are consuming our sport. This event is not only about the next generation of players, but also about the next generation of fans. We’ve created this new tournament precisely to allow us to look at some potential new elements, in a high-profile environment. We remain acutely aware of the traditions in our sport, and we will be sure to safeguard the integrity of our product when assessing if any changes should eventually be carried forward onto regular ATP World Tour events in the future.”

Angelo Binaghi, President of the Italian Tennis Federation, said: “We are proud to be at the forefront of innovation and change in tennis through this unique event, with the future stars of the sport that will be making headlines on the biggest stages over the next years. This tournament is all about looking to the future, and we would like to thank the ATP for having the vision and willingness to bring innovation into our sport. We look forward to a successful and exciting first edition of the event in November.”

Away from the court, fans and media attending the tournament will enjoy a fully immersive on-site experience, with a strong emphasis placed on unparalleled fan engagement through digital media, combined with unique player access across the tournament.

The tournament will take place on a singles-only court, featuring the best seven qualified 21-and-Under players of the season, plus one wild card. Taking place over five days, the event starts off with two round robin groups, followed by the semi-finals and final. A third place play-off will also be played by the two losing semi-finalists prior to the final on the last day. The tournament does not offer Emirates ATP Rankings points.

View FedEx ATP Head2Head for the following matches Tuesday at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia & vote for who you think will win!
Murray v Fognini | Goffin v Verdasco | Djokovic v Bedene | Zverev v Anderson 

The first round ends and second round begins Tuesday in Rome as Top 2 seeds Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic take to Center Court. Murray, who is 16-6 this season, faces No. 1 Italian Fabio Fognini. The Brit was 17-5 entering Rome last season before winning the title and finishing 2016 on a 61-4 run. Djokovic, a four-time champion, opens against Budapest finalist Aljaz Bedene. 

David Ferrer and No. 12 seed Tomas Berdych are hoping to post milestone victories against Feliciano Lopez and Carlos Berlocq respectively. Ferrer, who defeated World No. 1 Andre Agassi in his Rome debut 14 years ago, is one win from 700 career victories. Berdych could break a tie with his coach Goran Ivanisevic by beating Berlocq on Court 1 for his 600th career win.

The newly named Next Gen Arena hosts Emirates ATP Race to Milan leader Alexander Zverev against qualifier Kevin Anderson. No. 18 Nick Kyrgios and No. 20 Roberto Bautista Agut, the highest-ranked unseeded players in the field, face one another in a first-round match on Pietrangeli. Originally scheduled to meet 38-year-old Ivo Karlovic in the oldest ATP match since 1982, 39-year-old Tommy Haas instead meets 20-year-old lucky loser Ernesto Escobedo on Court 1.

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Roger Federer will return to the ATP World Tour on the grass. The 35-year-old Swiss announced on Monday that he will not play at Roland Garros, as he had initially planned. Federer made the decision with the next few years in mind.

“Regrettably, I’ve decided not to participate in the French Open. I’ve been working really hard, both on and off the court, during the last month, but in order to try and play on the ATP World Tour for many years to come, I feel it’s best to skip the clay-court season this year and prepare for the grass and hard-court seasons,” Federer said in a statement on his website.

The right-hander has had one of his best starts to a season. He’s currently 19-1 and has won three of the four tournaments he’s played, including the Australian Open, the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells and the Miami Open presented by Itau. His “Big Title” count has climbed to 50. Federer’s only defeat came against Russian Evgeny Donskoy in Dubai.

Roland Garros had been the only clay-court event Federer had planned to play. “The start to the year has been magical for me but I need to recognise that scheduling will be the key to my longevity moving forward,” he said. “Thus, my team and I concluded today that playing just one event on clay was not in the best interest of my tennis and physical preparation for the remainder of the season. I will miss the French fans, who have always been so supportive and I look forward to seeing them at Roland Garros next year.”

Federer also missed Roland Garros last year when he was recovering from knee surgery. He plans to return in June at the MercedesCup in Stuttgart, where he will be going for his first title.