Arthur Fils faces tough group stage at PIF Next Generation ATP Finals in Jeddah ATP Tour

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Fiers faces strong team in Jeddah

The draw for the 20 and under competition took place in Jeddah on Sunday

December 15, 2024

The world's leading 20-and-under players learned their group fates at the Next Generation ATP Finals hosted by PIF at an official draw ceremony in Jeddah on Sunday evening.

Three-time ATP Tour champion Arthur Fils is the top seed and leads the blue group. The 20-year-old Frenchman will compete alongside Jakub Mensik, Learner Tien and Joao Fonseca. Alex Michelsen, the second seed in the year-end event, leads the Red Group, which also includes Shang Jun Cheng, Luca Van Assche and Nishesh Basavareddy.

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Fiers, ranked No. 20 in the PIF ATP Rankings, enters the tournament as a heavy favorite, ranking well above Blue Group opponents Mencik (48), Tian (122) and Fonseca (145). But Fiers is expected to face a tough time with his team. Earlier this year, he lost to Fonseca 0-6, 4-6 in Rio de Janeiro. Mensik is one of the most explosive and dangerous players in the tournament, with four top-10 wins in 2024, while Tien is in hot form, winning three Challenger Tour titles this season.

Maxson (41 years old) and Monk (50 years old) are both ranked in the top 50 in the PIF ATP rankings. They have never met but hope to have a chance of advancing to the semi-finals, more than 70 places ahead of Van Assche and Basava Reddy. Shang won his first ATP Tour title in Chengdu in September, while Michaelson reached finals in Newport and Winston-Salem in 2024.

Van Assche, who is currently ranked 128th in the PIF ATP ranking, and Basava Reddy, who is ranked 138th in the world, form the red group. Van Assche reached the third round at the Australian Open in January, while Basavaredi has lifted two ATP Challenger trophies since October.

Next Generation ATP Finals hosted by PIF starting from wednesdaythe final will be held on Sunday, December 22nd. The round robin stage will take place from Wednesday to Friday, with the semifinals taking place on Saturday. The title fight will take place on Sunday 22nd at 8pm local time (6pm CET).

Zheng XianStefanos Tsitsipas, Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Brandon Nakashima and Hamad Medjedovic all won the event.

Blue group: Arthur Fils (1), Jakub Mensik (3), Learner Tien (5), Joao Fonseca (8).

Red group: Alex Michelson (2), Shang Juncheng (4), Luca Van Asher (6), Nishesh Basavareddy (7).