JEDDAH/WASHINGTON, November 28, 2023 (by Michael Dickens)
This year’s Next Gen ATP Finals presented by NEOM, which began its sixth edition in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, features two Frenchmen and a pair of Italians in the field of eight designed to showcase the best and brightest 21-and-under talent on the ATP Tour.
French teenagers Arthur Fils and Luca Van Assche, ranked No. 36 and No. 70, respectively, in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, are the top two players competing this week. No. 1 seed Fils became a first-time winner on the ATP Tour title at home in Lyon, and he made the biggest jump into the Top 50 from last year, improving 213 places in the rankings after starting at No. 249. No. 2 seed Van Assche won 10 ATP Tour level matches and reached two quarterfinals, in Hamburg and Metz. He also compiled an impressive 19-6 record on the ATP Challenger Tour and won two titles.
Who’s taking home the 🏆 #NextGenATPFinals pic.twitter.com/JxHBPxvvYW
— Next Gen ATP Finals (@nextgenfinals) November 28, 2023
Meanwhile, No. 5 seed Flavio Cobolli and No. 7 seed Luca Nardi are the two youngest Italians in the Top 125 Pepperstone ATP Rankings. The 21-year-old Cobolli is ranked 100th and Nardi, 20, is No. 115. They are the latest of eight Italians who have competed in the Next Gen ATP Finals, which includes 2019 champion Jannik Sinner.
Also competing this week are No. 3 seed Dominic Stricker of Switzerland, a semifinalist last year; No. 4 seed Alex Michelsen, a finalist this year at Newport in his second tour-level event; No. 6 seed Hamad Medjedovic of Serbia, who came straight to Jeddah from the Davis Cup Finals in Málaga, Spain; and No. 8 seed Abdullah Shelbayh of Jordan, who received a wild card into the Next Gen ATP Finals following a last-16 run in Metz last month.
Fils garners historic win in Jeddah
On Tuesday, the 19-year-old Fils became the first winner in Jeddah. He went the distance to defeat Nardi, 2-4, 4-3 (6), 4-2, 1-4, 4-2, in two hours and two minutes to begin play in the Green Group. He overcame 33 unforced errors by hitting 16 winners and won 80 percent of his first-serve points.
A new chapter is written ✍️
Arthur Fils defeats Luca Nardi in the first ever #NextGenATPFinals match in Jeddah. pic.twitter.com/e3LUM456mt
— Next Gen ATP Finals (@nextgenfinals) November 28, 2023
Afterward, during an on-court interview, Fils, who will finish the season at No. 36 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, labeled his opener against Nardi “a tough match.”
Fils said: “The first time in my life I’m playing first to four games. Things can change very quickly. I was leading two sets to one, had break points, and I was feeling very good. Then, I lost a deuce point and everything changed, but I’m really happy to win today.”
Finishing in style 🕺
Top-seed Arthur Fils takes down Luca Nardi in five sets 2-4, 4-3(6), 4-2, 1-4, 4-2. #NextGenATPFinals pic.twitter.com/sns5HvVfuV
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) November 28, 2023
Cobolli makes his debut a winning one
No. 100 Cobolli struck 25 winners in his 4-2, 3-4 (7), 4-1, 4-2 victory over last year’s semifinalist Stricker. Cobolli made a fast start in his Green Group opener and won a majority of the No-Ad points during the one-hour, 39-minute match on the Centre Court at King Abdullah Sports City. He saved 11 of 12 break points he faced and converted four of five opportunities in his first career meeting against the 94th-ranked Stricker.
Here to play 😤@cobollifla gets the better of the 2022 semi-finalist, defeating Dominic Stricker 4-2, 3-4(7), 4-1, 4-2. #NextGenATPFinals pic.twitter.com/7MHMPmQFLs
— Next Gen ATP Finals (@nextgenfinals) November 28, 2023
“I warmed up for a lot of time today, so I was really hot on court,” Cobolli told the ATP Tour website. “I started the match really well. The courts are so fast, but I was faster [than Stricker]. I played a really good match and I’m really happy.”
On Wednesday, Green Group play continues as Cobolli will face Fils, while Stricker takes on Nardi.
Van Assche starts with a strong win
On Tuesday evening, Van Assche became the second Frenchman to win on opening day, after he defeated No. 185 Shelbayh, 4-3 (5), 3-4 (5), 4-1, 4-1. While there were plenty of baseline exchanges during the first two sets, both which were decided by tie-breaks, Van Assche pulled away in the final two sets.
🇫🇷 Allez 🇫🇷@lucavanassche seals the deal against Abdullah Shelbayh 4-3(5), 3-4(5), 4-1, 4-1.#NextGenATPFinals pic.twitter.com/ag8YX0qz6a
— Next Gen ATP Finals (@nextgenfinals) November 28, 2023
The 19-year-old Van Assche broke Shelbayh, 20, five times in 10 opportunities, while saving 15 of the 17 break points he faced during the one hour and 54-minute match. Although Shelbayh hit 28 winners – 11 more than Van Assche – he was undone by 34 unforced errors.
“It was a tough match today, against a very tough opponent,” Van Assche said in his on-court interview. “I know Abdullah very well, he’s an amazing player. He was almost at home with the crowd cheering for him. It was a good match for me and really tough from the beginning to the end.”
Late-night thriller won by Medjedovic
The final match of the day, between Michelsen, 19, and Medjedovic, 20, arguably, was the most competitive one. There were a quartet of tie-breaks in this five-set thriller. By the time it ended, well after midnight in Jeddah, it was the 110th-ranked Medjedovic who won, 4-2, 4-3 (3), 3-4 (3), 3-4 (5), 4-3 (4), in two hours and 29 minutes. The final point of the match went down at 12:49 a.m.
Medjedovic hit 14 aces and struck 47 overall winners. He won 78 percent of his first-serve points and outpointed No. 97 Michelsen 113-96.
Making it count ☝️
Hamad Medjedovic notches up his first victory at the #NextGenATPFinals. pic.twitter.com/VY3e1yVv4g
— Next Gen ATP Finals (@nextgenfinals) November 28, 2023
“It’s a very special feeling to win my first match at this tournament,” Medjedovic said in his on-court interview. “When he leveled at two sets all I felt he had the momentum after I didn’t use the chances that I had.”
On Wednesday, Red Group play continues as Van Assche will play Medjedovic, while Shelbayh takes on Michelsen.
Tuesday’s Next Gen ATP Finals results
Wednesday’s Next Gen ATP Finals order of play
By the numbers
Among the star-studded alumni of the Next Gen ATP Finals are:
• 2021 champion Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, who won the 2022 US Open to become the youngest World No. 1.
• 2019 champion Jannik Sinner of Italy, who finished No. 4 this season and led Italy to the Davis Cup crown.
• 2018 champion Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece, who won the 2019 Nitto ATP Finals and has been ranked as high as No. 3.
“Quotable …”
“I think the match didn’t feel quicker, but with these new rules, anything can happen. This was the first match, so let’s see how it goes tomorrow.”
– Flavio Cobolli of Italy, quoted by the ATP Tour website, following his opening match against Dominic Stricker.
“It’s great to be here. A great arena, great to play today. I had my chances in the first set. Of course, I didn’t use them. It was very tough; he was very solid from the baseline, and he really played a good match.”
– Dominic Stricker of Switzerland, quoted by the ATP Tour website, after playing his first match.
