The upcoming NextGen ATP Finals can either be considered a season-ending event or – with the new tennis season less than two weeks away – the start of the 2025 campaign. Whatever the case, the prestigious eight-man, 20-and-under tournament has moved a few weeks back to assume a mid-December spot on the calendar. Following a five-year stretch in Milan, Italy since its inception in 2017, the event will take place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for the second time.
With round-robin competition beginning on Tuesday, it’s time to take a look at the best bets to be made for the NextGen ATP Finals.
Outright Winner Tips
- ARTHUR FILS
- JAKUB MENSIK
- JOAO FONSECA
Fils The Cream Of The Crop In Jeddah
A formidable eight-man field includes Arthur Fils, Alex Michelsen, Jakub Mensik, Juncheng Shang, Learner Tien, Luca Van Assche, Nishesh Basavareddy and Joao Fonseca. Although every qualifier for this tournament commands respect, there is no doubt that Fils is in a class above the rest. The 20-year-old Frenchman has already won 60 matches on the main tour in the early stages of his career (37 in 2024 alone) and is up to No. 20 in the world (Michelsen is the next highest-ranked participant at No. 41). Fils played extremely well this fall, too, capturing a title in Tokyo before advancing to the Basel semifinals. After finishing runner-up at the NextGen ATP Finals last season, Fils will be eager to go one step further this time.
Momentum With Mensik Following Impressive Fall Swing
Mensik comes in at No. 48 in the rankings on the heels of a stellar 2024 campaign in which he earned 25 match victories at the ATP level. His first final in Doha back in February was among the highlights, but Mensik was especially hot this fall. The 19-year-old made a run to the quarterfinals of the Shanghai Masters 1000 in early October, upsetting Andrey Rublev and Grigor Dimitrov before eventually falling to Novak Djokovic in three sets. He also reached the Vienna quarterfinals as a qualifier. Mensik is a big hitter with a huge serve, so his game style should work well on a relatively fast indoor hard court in Jeddah. The Czech will be dangerous this week.
Fonseca Worth A Look As A Longshot
Fonseca was the eighth and final qualifier for this tournament, but he is arguably the most hyped prospect in the field – yes, perhaps to an even greater extent than Fils. Just 18 years old, Fonseca has all the physical tools to be a future Grand Slam champion. He has played sparingly on the main tour (not surprising since he just turned 18 in August), but a quarterfinal effort at the ATP 500 in front of the home crowd in Rio de Janeiro showcased his talent. Fonseca should be sharp after playing a lot of tennis this fall, including three Davis Cup matches for Brazil (compiled a 2-1 record), to go along with quarterfinal and semifinal performances on the Challenger circuit (in Brest and Lyon, respectively). Even as the No. 8 seed in Jeddah, Fonseca certainly can’t be discounted.
