The tips & tricks Alcaraz has given the Nitto ATP Finals hitting partners
All eyes are on the best players in the world this week at the Nitto ATP Finals. The future is in Turin, too.
An annual tradition at the season finale is that the hitting partners for the players are some of the best rising stars in the sport. The ATP selects one player from the Next Gen Accelerator, one from the College Accelerator within it, and the No. 1-ranked junior player in the world.
This year’s hitting partners are former college standout Andres Martin, 19-year-old Bolivian Juan Carlos Prado Angelo and 18-year-old Norwegian Nicolai Budkov Kjaer, the world’s No. 1 junior.
“It’s been a really cool experience. You’re surrounded by the top eight guys in the world and even Stefanos [Tsitsipas] and [Grigor] Dimitrov, who are just as good as all these guys, are walking around really casually,” Martin said. “It’s really nice, you get a feeling, you see the level. You see what these guys are doing off the court, on the court. It’s really cool to watch and maybe try to take a little bit of bits and pieces of guys’ games and apply it to yourself.
“It’s really an unbelievable learning process for me. I’m really honoured to be here, and it’s really cool to watch everybody and be a part of it.”
[ATP APP]Martin found especially helpful conversations he had with Carlos Alcaraz, the youngest No. 1 in PIF ATP Rankings history.
“I was asking questions about my situation, and he was telling me some personal things about him. So I think it was really cool to have that one-on-one interaction. I think it’s really cool how other players take interest in upcoming players. I thought that was really special, just how nice these guys are,” Martin said. “They’re really helping, and even [Jannik] Sinner, no matter [who] I ask a question, they’re really eager to answer, and I think it’s really nice.”
<img alt=”Andres Martin” style=”width:100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/11/13/22/17/martin-nitto-atp-finals-2024-practice.jpg” />
Photo: Andrew Eichenholz/ATP Tour
The former Georgia Institute of Technology star asked Alcaraz several questions about his game and found the Spaniard’s answers insightful.
“He was just like, ‘The biggest thing is to understand your identity as a player. Once you figure that out, then you can go out and really just try to be that person every time you step on the court’,” Martin said. “So I think that’s something to take with me for the future.”
Budkov Kjaer won the Wimbledon boys’ singles title this year and has already grown to know some of the sport’s best players. The teen has had a top example in countryman Casper Ruud.
Even so, it has been a special week for a player trying to learn what it takes to succeed as a professional.
“It’s a great experience and a memory you will carry through your whole life,” Budkov Kjaer said. “It’s not every day you get the chance to play with some of the best players in the world. And of course, I’m extremely happy to have the chance to be here.”
Prado Angelo is at a career-high No. 274 in the PIF ATP Rankings, but he had only played one hard-court event in 2024 when he arrived in Turin.
“I’m not used to playing these conditions indoor hard,” Prado Angelo said. “In South America, we’re not used to but I am trying to play more low. They are like trying to teach me some tips.”
The Bolivian expressed his thanks for all the players. “Alcaraz, for the language, for me, was the easiest one, because we speak both Spanish. De Minaur too speaks Spanish, but they are all good,” Prado Angelo said. “They were kind with me, and I just like everyone.”
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