The 2022 season saw a host of #NextGenATP stars make their mark on Tour, with Holger Rune and Lorenzo Musetti among those capturing their maiden tour-level titles.

From Top 10 wins to career-high Pepperstone ATP Rankings, ATPTour.com looks back at the brightest young prospects of 2022.

Holger Rune, 19 years old
Holger Rune’s rise in 2022 was nothing short of remarkable. The 19-year-old started the season at No. 103 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings but ended the year as the World No. 11, having climbed to a career-high No. 10 following his dream run to the Rolex Paris Masters title.

After a consistent start, the Dane’s season took off in May when he defeated then-World No. 3 Alexander Zverev en route to his maiden tour-level title in Munich. A quarter-final run at Roland Garros followed, with Rune upsetting Stefanos Tsitsipas in Paris.

The 19-year-old saved his best until the end of the year, though, winning 19 of his final 21 matches of the season. Rune lifted the trophy in Stockholm and reached finals in Sofia and Basel in October. Arriving in Paris in confident mood, Rune beat Top 10 stars Hubert Hurkacz, Andrey Rublev, Carlos Alcaraz, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Novak Djokovic to win the biggest title of his career.

Lorenzo Musetti, 20 years old
Lorenzo Musetti had shown fans glimpses of his potential in 2021, reaching tour-level semi-finals in Acapulco and Lyon. However, the Italian took his game to a new level this season, climbing to a career-high No. 23 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

The 20-year-old impressed on clay across Europe, reaching the third round at ATP Masters 1000 events in Monte Carlo and Madrid before he won an ATP Challenger Tour crown on home soil in Forli. Musetti’s best result came in Hamburg, where he won his first tour-level title. He saved match points in his opening match to claw past Dusan Lajovic before he then defeated Carlos Alcaraz in a thrilling final to triumph.

Musetti transferred his impressive clay-court form to hard courts in the final months of the year. He captured the crown in Naples in October and advanced to the quarter-finals in Paris, ending the season holding a 34-27 tour-level record.

Jack Draper, 20 years old
With his big lefty serve and explosive forehand, Jack Draper made his mark in 2022. The 20-year-old entered the year at No. 265 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings with just two tour-level wins to his name.

Fast forward 11 months and the Briton is the World No. 41, having earned 21 tour-level victories this year. Draper, who missed the second half of 2021 due to a ruptured ligament in his ankle, started the season on fire, winning four ATP Challenger Tour titles in the opening four months.

The 20-year-old then quickly impressed on the ATP Tour. He won main draw matches at ATP Masters 1000 events in Miami and Madrid before he soared to his first tour-level semi-final on home soil in Eastbourne. Draper made his biggest splash in North America, where he earned his first Top 10 win against Stefanos Tsitsipas en route to the quarter-finals in Montreal before he upset Felix Auger-Aliassime at the US Open.

Brandon Nakashima, 21 years old
Brandon Nakashima is next. The American ended his season in style in Milan where he became the fifth player to capture the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals title. The 20-year-old, currently No. 47 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, blitzed through the field at the 21-and-under event to become an undefeated champion in Italy.

Earlier in the season, Nakashima clinched his first tour-level title in San Diego, defeating Marcos Giron in the final to triumph on home soil. He also impressed at the Grand Slams, reaching the third round at Roland Garros and the US Open and the fourth round at Wimbledon.

The American will look to follow in the footsteps of previous the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals champions Stefanos Tsitsipas, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz and crack the Top 10 in the future.

Jiri Lehecka, 21 years old
For Jiri Lehecka, sporting success runs in the family, with his father a former swimmer and his mother a track and field star. In 2022, the Czech made his mark in the tennis scene with a series of impressive results on both the ATP Challenger Tour and ATP Tour.

The 21-year-old’s breakthrough season started in Rotterdam. After coming through qualifying, he earned his maiden tour-level win against Denis Shapovalov. He then defeated Botic van de Zandschulp and Lorenzo Musetti to reach the semi-finals in a run that lifted him into the Top 100.

Lehecka struggled for consistency in the following months but did lift an ATP Challenger Tour trophy in Liberec in August before finishing the year impressively in Milan, where he advanced to the final on debut at the 21-and-under event.

Despite facing unique challenges this season, Ukrainian Oleksii Krutykh’s perseverance has led to his career-best results on the ATP Challenger Tour.

With his home country under attack, the Kyiv native’s ability to see family and friends at home has been limited since the Russian invasion in February. Despite the worry for his loved ones, Krutykh (pronounced KROT-ic) has shown the mental strength to produce the best season of his young career. 

“It’s a difficult situation,” Krutykh said. “When it all started, I was out playing tournaments and my family was still in Ukraine. I said to myself I had no other options and I needed to play.”

The 22-year-old, who has won two Challenger titles this season, has drawn motivation from Ukrainian soldiers, such as former World No. 31 Sergiy Stakhovsky, who retired earlier this year and began fighting for his home country.

Stakhovsky, who is a four-time Tour titlist, hasn’t lost touch with the sport. When Krutykh won the Prague and Valencia Challengers, which helped him reach a career-high 190 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Stakhovsky contacted the youngster and congratulated him on his successes.

Oleksii Krutykh in action at the 2022 Valencia Challenger. Credit: Raul Piles

“I told myself I needed to fight on the court because of all the people back home that are fighting for Ukraine,” Krutykh said. “Stakhovsky is a brave man, he is there fighting… He’s cheering me up after my Challenger wins. He is supporting me, it’s so nice. I’m not a big player like him, but to get messages from Sergiy, that’s big for me.”

‘Alexey’ seemed unfazed during his first Challenger final in August, when he defeated German Lucas Gerch to triumph at the Challenger 50 event in Prague. Krutykh’s aggressive game style continued to prove effective as he claimed his second Challenger trophy of the season this past week in Valencia, Spain, where he rallied from a set down in his quarter-final and semi-final matches to keep his title run alive.

To his surprise, Krutykh also lifted the doubles trophy in Valencia. Partnered with Spaniard Oriol Roca Batalla, the pair went from ‘the last team to sign in’ to champions at the Challenger 90 event.

Oleksii Krutykh (left) and Oriol Roca Batalla are crowned doubles champions in Valencia, Spain. Credit: Raul Piles

Amidst a rollercoaster season filled with immense trials back home, ‘Alexey’ has seen positives on-court, including becoming Ukraine’s highest-ranked player.

“It’s an amazing feeling for me,” Krutykh said. “I didn’t think that this year would be so good. It’s a great achievement for me. I didn’t expect that this year I would become Ukrainian No. 1. It’s a good achievement, we don’t have a lot of players, but it’s nice.”

After starting the season at No. 398 and playing mostly ITF Futures events, the 22-year-old transitioned to the Challenger Tour, which helped launch his career to new heights and achieve his goals for 2022.

“It was my goal [at the beginning of the season] to reach Grand Slam qualies for next year,” Krutykh said. “The perfect goal was to finish in the Top 200. The last tournament of the year, now I’m 190, for me it’s a great success.

“I [started the year] playing Futures and when I won a tournament [M25 Antalya], I decided to play only Challenger tournaments. For me it was a big step up. It’s a huge opportunity and it’s worked out well.”

This week, ATPTour.com begins its annual season-in-review series, looking back at 2022’s best matches, biggest upsets, most dramatic comebacks and more. In this installment, we look back at the best upsets at the Grand Slams, featuring Americans Brandon Holt, Maxime Cressy and Sebastian Korda.

5) Australian Open, R1, Korda d. Norrie 6-3, 6-0, 6-4
More than the result itself, this upset makes the cut for the domination with which Sebastian Korda scored his first Aussie Open win. Playing in his first match of the 2022 season, the American cruised to victory behind immediate breaks in all three sets, dismissing the 12th seed in one hour, 42 minutes.

A positive COVID-19 test forced Korda to withdraw from the Adelaide International I event in the first week of the season, and he made his way to Melbourne only after seven days of hotel isolation. But he quickly made up for lost time by improving to 2-0 in his ATP Head2Head against Cameron Norrie.

Norrie finished the 2021 season in great form, winning the Indian Wells title in October before making his Nitto ATP Finals debut as an alternate. While he would go on to break into the Top 10 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings and reach the Wimbledon semi-finals in 2022, he did not bring his best tennis to Melbourne — and Korda was in no mood to let him hang around and find it.

Korda celebrated his statement victory in style with a scissor kick, in honour of his coach and father, 1998 Australian Open champion Petr Korda.

“I am just super happy with the way I came out. I stuck with my tactics. They worked really well and [I am] really comfortable on these courts,” the rising star said post-match. “I think even in the tight situations I still stayed with it. I kept being aggressive, using my powerful strokes on these fast courts.”

Then 21, Korda backed up that result with a fifth-set tie-break win against Corentin Moutet before falling to Pablo Carreno Busta in four sets.

Photo Credit: Peter Staples/ATP Tour

4) Wimbledon, R1, Cressy d. Auger-Aliassime 6-7(5), 6-4, 7-6(9), 7-6(5)
Beginning the year outside the Top 100 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Maxime Cressy made waves early in the season in Australia. The Paris-born American reached the Melbourne Summer Set final as a qualifier and later reached the Australian Open fourth round, where he took a set off eventual finalist Daniil Medvedev. But Cressy’s serve-and-volley game is best suited for grass courts, and that’s where he scored the biggest win of his career (by ranking) against sixth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime.

While knowledgable fans knew the net-rusher would be a tough out on the London lawns, the fact that the upset came in Cressy’s Wimbledon main-draw debut and earned him his first Top 10 win helped it make our list.

In a flawless serving performance, the 25-year-old stayed true to his attacking credo by charging the net 134 times, winning 71 percent (95/134) of those points. He saved the only break point against him in the match and rose to the occasion in two tie-breaks — executing a stretch volley on match point — to continue his rapid rise.

“It’s very special,” Cressy said after the victory. “Felix was incredibly focussed the whole match. I had to stay focussed until the end. I knew that I would maybe have a few match points and it gets super close. I knew I had to stay in the zone.

After the match, Auger-Aliassime called Cressy “courageous” and a “deserving” winner, and predicted a rise into the Top 20 for the American. One month later, after winning his first ATP Tour title on the grass of Newport, Cressy reached a career-high of World No. 31.

Photo Credit: Sebastien Bozon/AFP via Getty Images

3) Roland Garros, R1, Simon d. Carreno Busta 6-4, 6-4, 4-6, 1-6, 6-4
Frenchman Gilles Simon extended his Roland Garros farewell with a memorable, late-night win against 16th seed Pablo Carreno Busta that kept the Court Simonne-Mathieu crowd in full voice until after 1 a.m. in Paris.

Following a fast start, the 37-year-old Simon faded physically as his Spanish opponent ripped through the fourth set to level and lead 4-2 in the fifth. But with the raucous support of his home fans, the veteran found a second wind and turned the match around, winning its final four games to seal a famous result.

“It was a crazy match, an unexpected win,” Simon said after earning his second tour-level victory of the 2022 season. “It’s the most unexpected win I could have. It was really hard for me to see myself as a winner today when I was just warming up and everything. I knew it would be really hard… When the match starts to turn crazy like this, it means you just have two players on the same level trying to give everything to win. Sometimes you win it and sometimes you lose it.”

After earning his first Roland Garros win since 2019, Simon recorded his 500th career victory with a second-round triumph against Steve Johnson. He bowed out at his home Slam after a defeat to Marin Cilic in the third round and ultimately finished his career back in France at the Rolex Paris Masters in November — but not before a pair of three-set upsets against Andy Murray and Taylor Fritz.

Photo Credit: Thomas Samson/AFP via Getty Images

2) US Open, R1, Galan d. Tsitsipas 6-0, 6-1, 3-6, 7-5
The only thing more stunning than this US Open upset was the ease with which qualifier Daniel Elahi Galan raced to a two-set lead against Stefanos Tsitsipas in Louis Armstrong Stadium. With nothing to lose, the fearless Colombian swung for the fences and totally dictated play, not allowing the then-World No. 5 a path into the match in the early stages.

Tsitsipas entered the year’s final Grand Slam with a chance at the No. 1 Pepperstone ATP Ranking, but nearly went two sets without winning a game as Galan led 6-0, 5-0. 

It was a scarcely believable start to the 26-year-old Colombian’s US Open main-draw debut, but the finish would prove far more challenging.

The fourth-seeded Greek found his footing to take set three and led by a break in the fourth, but he was soon on the brink as Galan edged back ahead. It took nine match points, as Tsitsipas leaned on his serve to escape time and again, but Galan ultimately completed the job when a forehand error handed him the match-winning break.

“Definitely one of the best moments of my career,” Galan said. “Definitely the best match of my career, not only because of the circumstances, also the opponent. I’m really happy.” 

By claiming his first Top 20 win in seven tries, the Colombian sent Tsitsipas crashing out of New York in the opening round for the second time in five years. Galan backed up his victory with a five-set triumph against Aussie Jordan Thompson before falling to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in four sets in the third round.

Photo Credit: Julian Finney/Getty Images

1) US Open, R1, Holt d. Fritz 6-7(3), 7-6(1), 6-3, 6-4
Qualifier Brandon Holt carried on a family tradition of US Open success with a shock victory in a Grand Slam debut for the ages. The son of two-time US Open singles champ Tracy Austin, Holt won his first tour-level match in style by defeating his 10th-seeded countryman Taylor Fritz.

Entering New York at No. 303 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Holt earned all three of his qualifying wins in deciding sets, twice recovering from a set down. He once again had his back to the wall against fellow California native Fritz, dropping the opening set despite roaring to a 5-2 lead.

Holt then saved three set points at 5-6 in set two before running away with the tie-break and racing out to early leads in sets three and four. In each of the last two sets, Fritz cut a two-break deficit to one, but Holt stood tall to serve his way to a landmark victory on home soil.

“I was excited to be playing my first main-draw match,” Holt said after an emotional embrace with his mother, who was courtside in the Grandstand. “I had pretty good momentum from playing three qualies matches in a row. I felt pretty match tough. I had a lot of fun, a lot of friends and family were on the court, in a big stadium. Biggest match I’ve played in so far.”

Adding further significance to the victory was Holt’s injury scare one year earlier. Diagnosed with osteoid osteoma — a condition which caused an extra bone to grow in his hand — Holt underwent surgery in August 2021, keeping him out of action for eight months.

The shock New York result was made all the more stunning by Fritz’s stellar close to the season, which saw him reach the Nitto ATP Finals semis in his tournament debut. For Holt, the victory remains his lone tour-level win.

This week, ATPTour.com begins its annual season-in-review series, looking back at 2022’s best matches, biggest upsets, most dramatic comebacks and more. In this installment, we look back at the biggest upsets on the ATP Tour this season (excluding the Grand Slams), featuring Holger Rune, Taylor Fritz and Jack Draper. On Thursday we will focus on the best Grand Slam upsets of the year.

5) Libema Open, van Rijthoven d. Fritz (R2), Auger-Aliassime (SF), Medvedev (Final)
Dutchman Tim van Rijthoven’s wild card run on the grass of ‘s-Hertogenbosch comes in at No. 5 on our list — but it could have been the biggest stunner, according to the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

The 25-year-old beat each of the top three seeds in the field — Taylor Fritz, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Daniil Medvedev — to become the lowest-ranked tour-level champion of the season at World No. 205.

In winning his first ATP Tour title, van Rijthoven battled back from a set down against Fritz in the second round, won a third-set tie-break against Auger-Aliassime in the semis and “destroyed” (Medvedev’s word) the World No. 2, 6-4, 6-1 in the final. 

“This is new for me, it’s going to take some time getting used to,” said the Dutchman, who had not won a tour-level match prior to his title run. “What a dream this week. I would like to thank my team for staying humble this week, doing the normal things, not making this thing any bigger than it was.”

Building off his trophy run, van Rijthoven went on to reach the fourth round at Wimbledon, taking a set off Novak Djokovic in defeat after cutting down seeds Reilly Opelka and Nikoloz Basilashvili. He reached a career-high Pepperstone ATP Ranking of World No. 101 in July behind his strong showings in ‘s-Hertogenbosch and London.

4) Western & Southern Open, R2, Shelton d. Ruud 6-3, 6-3
Not long after finishing his sophomore year at the University of Florida, then-19-year-old Ben Shelton proved he was ready to graduate to the professional level with a breakout showing in Cincinnati during his first ATP Masters 1000 event.

Facing World No. 5 Casper Ruud in the second round, the wild card made quick work of the Norwegian with a straight-sets victory. The American needed just over an hour to notch his fist Top 10 win.

“I think you’ve got to fake it till you make it, right?” Shelton said of his jump to the elite level. “If I’m not feeling completely comfortable at the beginning, I’m going to do my best to show that I am until I find myself in a place where I am settled in.”

The American’s victory has aged like a fine wine, as Miami finalist Ruud further proved his hard-court chops by advancing to the title matches at both the US Open and the Nitto ATP Finals later in the season.

Shelton, who officially turned pro just before making his Grand Slam debut in New York, used the momentum and the Pepperstone ATP Rankings points from his Cincinnati run to eventually break into the Top 100 following three straight ATP Challenger Tour titles in November.

3) National Bank Open Presented by Rogers, R2, Draper d. Tsitsipas 7-5, 7-6(4)
#NextGenATP Briton Jack Draper picked the perfect time to score his first Top 10 win, capping what was a day full of upsets in Montreal with the biggest shock of them all at the ATP Masters 1000.

The 20-year-old stunned then-World No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas under the lights for the biggest win of his young career. Draper took control of the baseline as he frustrated the Greek and broke three times on nine chances. While he was aggressive throughout from the backcourt, Draper’s superior consistency in the late stages of both sets proved decisive, with the Briton winning the last three points of the match from 4/4 in the second-set tie-break.

“This is why I put in all the hard work, for nights like this on stages like this,” he said after claiming the victory on centre court against a man 77 places higher than him in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

Draper went on the reach the quarter-finals in Montreal, and continued his strong play by reaching the third round at the US Open. A semi-finalist at the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals to close his season, he will finish the year inside the Top 50.

2) BNP Paribas Open, Final, Fritz d. Nadal 6-3, 7-6(5)
While not seismic by the measure of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Taylor Fritz’s victory against Rafael Nadal in the Indian Wells final was remarkable for a number of reasons — none more so than the fact that the American nearly didn’t take the court.

After tweaking his ankle in the semi-finals against Andrey Rublev, Fritz was in serious pain the day of the final and nearly pulled out before the match. But going against the advice of his team, he decided to step out onto centre court at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden for what was the biggest match of his career.

Once the action began, Fritz took the match to Nadal, powering to a 4-0 lead with aggressive play on serve and return. The Spaniard began to soak up his opponent’s pace in set two, but Fritz saved five break points and reasserted himself late in the set, ultimately closing the deal with a patented serve-forehand combo on match point.

“I can’t even begin to describe how ridiculous it is that I was able to play how I could play today,” said Fritz, choking back tears after fulfilling his childhood dream of winning the title in his native Southern California. “I’ve never experienced worse pain in my life before a match.”

Nadal was not in perfect health himself, struggling with a rib fracture which would sideline him six weeks following the final. The Spaniard reached the title match by winning a thrilling three-setter against Carlos Alcaraz in blustery conditions, having escaped a double-break deficit against Sebastian Korda in the third set of his opening match. 

The win earned Fritz his first ATP Masters 1000 trophy and his first win against Nadal in two tries. It also ended the Spaniard’s 20-match win streak to begin the season, the best start of his career. Fritz would again defeat Nadal at the Nitto ATP Finals, where he reached the semis on his debut.

1) Rolex Paris Masters, Rune d. Hurkacz (R2), Rublev (R3), Alcaraz (QF), Auger-Aliassime (SF), Djokovic (Final)
Holger Rune was already enjoying a strong indoor season before the Rolex Paris Masters, reaching three straight finals and winning the title in Stockholm. But in claiming the third and biggest title of his blossoming career, the 19-year-old Dane upset five Top 10 opponents in succession in Bercy.

That run only began after Rune saved three match points against former World No. 3 Stan Wawrinka in the opening round. After his early escape, he beat Hubert Hurkacz, Andrey Rublev, Carlos Alcaraz and Felix Auger-Aliassime — all without dropping a set — to set up a final showdown with six-time champion Novak Djokovic.

Rune capped off his Cinderella run with a 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 win against the defending champion and former World No. 1, winning a marathon service game to close out the victory. The fearless Dane was particularly effective against Djokovic when following his serve with a forehand approach, winning 89 per cent (16/18) of points that began with that pattern.

“It means everything to me, a perfect way to finish the week,” Rune said after claiming the title.

After beating all those Top 10 players, the Norwegian ended the week in the Top 10 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings himself for the first time.

“I’m feeling lovely to be honest, it’s the best feeling,” Rune said of the achievement. “If you told me four weeks ago, I would be Top 10… I would be like ‘What, sorry?’ Now I’m here and I’m super proud.”

World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and coach Juan Carlos Ferrero have received a total of three nominations in the 2022 ATP Awards, with nominees revealed today for the four player-voted categories and for Coach of the Year.

Alcaraz and Ferrero pick up nods in the Most Improved and Coach categories, respectively, for a second straight year. The 19-year-old Alcaraz, who has already been honoured as the ATP No. 1 presented by Pepperstone, is also nominated for the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award for the first time, alongside Felix Auger-Aliassime, five-time winner Rafael Nadal, Casper Ruud and Frances Tiafoe.

Alcaraz will go up against two other young stars, Jack Draper and Holger Rune, and 25-year-old American Maxime Cressy for Most Improved Player of the Year. Draper, 20, and Rune, 19, are also among the five nominees for Newcomer of the Year, which includes #NextGenATP players who broke into the Top 100 for the first time in 2022.

Nominees for Comeback Player of the Year, Most Improved Player of the Year and the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award are determined by an International Tennis Writers’ Association (ITWA) vote. Coach of the Year nominees are selected through first-round voting by ATP coaches.

ATP Awards winners, including Fans’ Favourite, will be revealed during Awards week, starting December 12th. Fans can vote for their favourite singles player and doubles team through Friday, 2 December.

View the complete list of 2022 ATP Awards nominees:

VOTED BY PLAYERS

Comeback Player of the Year: The player who has overcome serious injury in re-establishing himself as one of the top players on the ATP Tour.

Borna Coric
Dominic Thiem
Stan Wawrinka
Wu Yibing

Most Improved Player of the Year: The player who reached a significantly higher Pepperstone ATP Ranking by year’s end and who demonstrated an increasingly improved level of performance through the year.

Carlos Alcaraz
Maxime Cressy
Jack Draper
Holger Rune

Newcomer of the Year: The #NextGenATP player who broke into the Top 100 for the first time in 2022 and made the biggest impact on the ATP Tour this season.

Jack Draper
Jiri Lehecka
Ben Shelton
Chun-Hsin Tseng
Holger Rune

Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award: The player who, throughout the year, conducted himself at the highest level of professionalism and integrity, who competed with his fellow players with the utmost spirit of fairness and who promoted the game through his off-court activities.

Carlos Alcaraz
Felix Auger-Aliassime
Rafael Nadal
Casper Ruud
Frances Tiafoe

VOTED BY COACHES

Coach of the Year: Nominated and voted on by fellow ATP coach members, this award goes to the ATP coach who helped guide his players to a higher level of performance during the year.

Juan Carlos Ferrero (Carlos Alcaraz)
Frederic Fontang (Felix Auger-Aliassime)
Goran Ivanisevic (Novak Djokovic)
Michael Russell (Taylor Fritz)
Christian Ruud (Casper Ruud)

Few young stars on the ATP Tour made greater strides in 2022 than Brandon Nakashima.

The 21-year-old lifted his maiden ATP Tour title in his hometown of San Diego in September before going unbeaten in Milan to become the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals champion in November. Now inside the Top 50 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Nakashima has established himself as one of the most consistent young players on Tour with his hard-hitting, versatile game.

Luckily, Nakashima is now an ambassador for TopCourt, giving fans the chance to find out more about the secrets behind his meteoric rise. They include not only his physical and technical approaches, but also the keys to his calm on-court demeanour that belies his tender age. Nakashima reveals how his mental discipline was honed during his time as a college player in the United States, and dives deeper into how it helped prepare him for his ATP Tour breakthrough.

Instruction: Nakashima’s dominant returning was key to his recent triumph in Milan, and the #NextGenATP American teams up with Serbian coach Dusan Vemic to dissect the fundamentals of ‘Ad Side’ returning. Nakashima and Vemic demonstrate good technique while also flagging some common mistakes to avoid when stepping into your shot.

Drills: The element of surprise should never be underestimated, and Nakashima shares the perfect drill for developing a good kick serve to catch your opponent off guard on the ad side. The service strategy Nakashima demonstrates can manoeuvre opponents off the court, giving you the chance to take charge of rallies as well as helping to increase your all-important first-serve percentage.

Follow Nakashima’s Tutorials at TopCourt.com.

ATPTour.com’s annual season-in-review series looks back at 2022’s best matches, biggest upsets, most dramatic comebacks and more. Today we reflect on five of the most memorable Grand Slam battles of the year, featuring World No. 1 and US Open winner Carlos Alcaraz, and Australian Open and Roland Garros champion Rafael Nadal.

5. Roland Garros, QF, Cilic d. Rublev 5-7, 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(10-2)
As two of the most fearsome forehands on Tour clashed at the beginning of June on the Roland Garros clay, an extraordinary sequence of clean hitting from Marin Cilic in the deciding-set tie-break clinched a thrilling quarter-final against Andrey Rublev.

Cilic came into the match in a confident mood — he had described his fourth-round triumph in Paris against World No. 2 Daniil Medvedev as “one of the best matches of my career from start to finish” — and the Croatian’s confidence was clearly demonstrated in the way he took the deciding tie-break out of Rublev’s hands at the tail-end of an almighty tussle with a sequence of searing winners.

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“It comes from being me,” said Cilic when asked about his aggressive approach to the tie-break, in which he won nine straight points from 1/2. “I played that kind of tennis the whole match, and especially the fifth set was an incredible battle… A lot of heart, and one had to go down. Today was my day, but Andrey also played an incredible match.”

Cilic had to dig deep after a fast start from Rublev on Court Philippe Chatrier, where the Croatian opted to meet the seventh seed’s forceful groundstrokes with plenty of power-hitting of his own. He finished the match having struck a remarkable 88 winners, including 33 aces, in an epic four-hour, 10-minute triumph.

The win made 33-year-old Cilic the fifth then-active player to reach the semi-finals of all four Grand Slams, alongside Roger Federer (now retired), Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.

4. Roland Garros, SF, Nadal d. Zverev 7-6(8), 6-6 (RET)
It may seem unusual to declare a match that potentially wasn’t even halfway done when halted by injury as one of the best of the season, but such was the quality of tennis that Rafael Nadal and Alexander Zverev produced in their Roland Garros semi-final clash that it remains a must inclusion.

“I’m 25. I am at the stage where I want to win,” Zverev had said prior to his meeting with the then-13-time champion Nadal on Court Philippe Chatrier. ”I’m at the stage where I’m supposed to win, as well.”

There was a steely determination to those pre-match comments from the German. Just two victories from claiming a maiden Grand Slam crown which would also have lifted him to No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings for the first time, he seemed set on taking the match to the Spaniard.

For the best part of two sets, Zverev did just that, as his fearless approach played a major role in some of the most scintillating Grand Slam tennis of the year. The World No. 3 went toe-to-toe with Nadal from the baseline early on, before the Spaniard showcased his resilience by rallying from 2/6 in the first-set tie-break to claim an epic one-hour, 31-minute opener.

Despite that disappointment, Zverev’s determination to stay on the front foot helped him open a 5-3 lead in the second set. After Nadal had again rallied to reclaim the break and take an absorbing encounter to the brink of a second-set tie-break, however, a match already set to become a bona fide classic was cruelly cut short.

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Chasing a Nadal forehand out wide to his right on the final point of the 12th game, Zverev badly rolled his right ankle. The ligament damage he suffered immediately put a painful end to both his Roland Garros campaign and his bid to become World No. 1, as well as bringing to a halt one of the best matches of the season after a breathtaking three hours and 13 minutes on Court Philippe Chatrier.

“Very tough and very sad for him,” Nadal said after the match. “Honestly, he was playing an unbelievable tournament. He’s a very good colleague on the Tour. I know how much he’s fighting to win a Grand Slam, but for the moment he was very unlucky. The only thing I’m sure is that he is going to win not one — more than one.”

3. Australian Open, Third Round, Berrettini d. Alcaraz 6-2, 7-6(3), 4-6, 2-6, 7-6(10-5)
There were some early signs of what was to come from Carlos Alcaraz in 2022 in this third-round epic at January’s Australian Open, but a fired-up Matteo Berrettini prevailed over the Spaniard across a topsy-turvy five sets in the Melbourne heat.

The seventh-seeded Italian appeared in control after surging to a two-sets-to-love lead on Rod Laver Arena, before the 18-year-old Alcaraz roared back to force a deciding-set tie-break. Having rolled his ankle in the second game of the fifth set, it was to Berrettini’s credit that he held firm to clinch a four-hour, 10-minute battle.

“I felt confident, and that momentum was on my side in the third set but then I got broken,” said the Italian afterwards. “My energy wasn’t right in the fourth set and in the fifth I just started to think about fighting for every point. In every match something happens [like the ankle injury] but I fought through it.”

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Alcaraz saved a match point at 5-6, 30/40 in the fifth set to take the pair’s first Grand Slam encounter to a deciding tie-break. Although a series of missed forehands subsequently cost the then-World No. 31 a statement victory, Berrettini was full of praise for his young opponent.

“At his age I didn’t have an ATP point and he will only improve,” said the Italian. “He showed everyone his potential today.”

“I’m very proud of the performance today,” reflected Alcaraz. “It was my first time two sets down and then to be able to come back the way I did… I gave everything on the court.”

2. Australian Open, Final, Nadal d. Medvedev 2-6, 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5
At two sets-to-love-down and trailing 2-3, 0/40 on his own serve, Rafael Nadal’s hopes for a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam title at January’s Australian Open appeared lost. Daniil Medvedev’s red-hot start to the championship match in Melbourne had left the Spaniard struggling to keep up.

Cue what Nadal later described as “probably the biggest comeback of my tennis career”, as the 35-year-old roared to a stunning five-set victory to become the first male player to win 21 major crowns. Nadal began to out-hit Medvedev, one of the most powerful ballstrikers in the game, as he broke the second seed five times across the third, fourth and fifth sets on Rod Laver Arena.

“At the end history is about the victory, but the way that you win the match in terms of personal feelings is different,” Nadal said after the five-hour, 24-minute epic. “The way that I achieved this trophy tonight was just unforgettable, one of the most emotional matches of my tennis career, without a doubt. [It] means a lot to me.”

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Nadal’s ability to stay the course was all the more remarkable considering his relatively recent return to the Tour after missing the second half of the 2021 season with a left-foot injury. Medvedev later admitted his disbelief at his 35-year-old’s physical prowess during the pair’s marathon battle.

“[It’s] tough to talk after five hours, 30 minutes and losing, but I want to congratulate Rafa because what he did today, I was amazed,” said the second seed. “I tried during the match just to play tennis, but after the match I asked him, ‘Are you tired?’, because it was insane.”

1. US Open, QF, Alcaraz d. Sinner 6-3, 6-7(7), 6-7(0), 7-5, 6-3
Two of the biggest young talents in the game battling it out until the early hours in New York City, September’s US Open quarter-final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner was one for the history books.

It was a demonstration of power, athleticism, skill and sheer mental resilience from two players who look set to be at the top of the game for years to come. In what may well be the first of many classic Grand Slam battles between the two, Alcaraz ultimately prevailed having saved match point at 4-5 in the fourth set en route to a remarkable five-hour, 15-minute win.

“”Honestly, I still don’t know how I did it,” said the Spaniard after sealing victory in the second-longest match in tournament history. “You have to believe in yourself. I believed in my game. It was really difficult to close out the match. I tried to stay calm, but it is difficult in the moment.”

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The 19-year-old Alcaraz and 20-year-old Sinner both hit the ball with relentless force throughout. The combination of power and consistency kept an enraptured Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd on the edge of their seats all the way through to 2:50 a.m., when Alcaraz finally clinched a New York classic that broke the record for the latest finish in tournament history.

“The energy I received in this court at 3 a.m., it was unbelievable,” Alcaraz later acknowledged. “I mean, probably in other tournaments, everybody [would go] to their house to rest. But they [stayed] in the court, supporting me. It was unbelievable.”

Swiss Leandro Riedi and Japan’s Yosuke Watanuki are making a late season surge on the ATP Challenger Tour. Riedi and Watanuki, who are among four Challenger champions this week, have each claimed two Challenger titles in as many weeks and are at a career-high mark in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

Riedi, 20, was crowned champion this week at the Andria Challenger. The #NextGenATP youngster, who defeated Mikhail Kukushkin 7-6(4), 6-3 in the final, didn’t drop a set all week en route to winning the Castel Del Monte Open – Andria.

The Frauenfeld native joins Marc-Andrea Huesler and Dominic Stricker as two-time Challenger titlists this season from Switzerland. After winning 12 straight matches, including advancing through qualifying to win the Helsinki Challenger, Riedi rises to a career-high 161 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

“I feel unbelievable,” Riedi said. “It’s been an absolutely crazy two weeks. I loved it, it was so much fun. It’s been the best two weeks of my career and I hope it’s just the beginning.”

The 2020 Roland Garros boys’ singles finalist (l. Stricker) has been making a sudden impact on the Challenger Tour since finishing a standout junior career, including winning the 2020 Australian Open boys’ doubles title (Nicholas David Ionel).

In Andria doubles action, British duo Julian Cash and Henry Patten captured a record-setting ninth Challenger title this season. The previous record, eight Challenger doubles titles in a season, was set in 2012 by twin brothers from Thailand, Sanchai and Sonchat Ratiwatana.

Watanuki, seeded third, didn’t drop a set all week to triumph at the Yokkaichi Challenger. In a rematch of the previous week’s Kobe Challenger final, Watanuki defeated Portugal’s Frederico Ferreria Silva 6-2, 6-2 in the championship match.

“Honestly, before these four weeks (Japanese Challenger swing) started, I didn’t expect such good results,” Watanuki said.

“I really can’t believe I’m ranked 145. I want to play on the ATP Tour as much as possible in the future. Whenever I had a chance, I always tried to play on the ATP Tour this year. I definitely have a better outlook playing with high level players. I want to challenge myself more and more.”

The 24-year-old, who is coached by his older brother Yusuke, reached his first Tour-level quarter-final earlier this season at the ATP 250 event in Lyon (l. de Minaur).

Watanuki has built upon his season’s success, including winning 14 of his past 15 matches and reaching the final at each of the past three Challenger tournaments he’s competed in (Yokohama, Kobe, Yokkaichi). The Saitama native is the only Japanese player to claim multiple challenger titles this season.

Despite coming into the week ranked No. 901, Argentine Guido Andreozzi advanced through qualifying at the Temuco Challenger en route to capturing his first Challenger title since October 2018 (Guayaquil).

Guido Andreozzi breathes a sigh of relief after winning the Temuco Challenger. Credit: Bastien Vidal

Andreozzi, former World No. 70, rallied from a set down in the final to defeat countryman Nicolas Kicker 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. After needing deciding sets in four of his five main draw matches this week, the Buenos Aires native prevailed to win the Challenger Dove Men+Care Temuco.

The 31-year-old adds to Argentina’s record-setting 23 Challenger titles this season. Andreozzi is the 16th different Argentine champion of this year, marking a Challenger Tour record for the most different winners from a single country in a season.

Andreozzi also paired with Guillermo Duran to win their seventh team title this year at the Challenger 100 event in Chile.

At the Copa Faulcombridge in Valencia, Spain, Ukraine’s Oleksii Krutykh defeated French teenager Luca Van Assche 6-2, 6-0 in the final to collect his second Challenger title of the season.

Oleksii Krutykh in action at the 2022 Valencia Challenger. Credit: Raul Piles

The 22-year-old, who also won the Prague Challenger in August, is the only Ukrainian to claim a Challenger title this season. This week in Valencia, Krutykh rallied from a set down in his quarter-final and semi-final matches to keep his title run alive.

The Kyiv native, who also won the doubles title in Spain (w/ Oriol Roca Batalla) rises to a career-high 190 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.