Next Gen ATP Finals Open in Jeddah with Tien Seeded First

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia — The 2025 ATP Tour season draws to a close this week as eight of the world's top young players under 21 converge on King Abdullah Sports City for the Next Gen ATP Finals, running from December 17 to 21. Learner Tien of the United States enters as the top seed and clear favorite, aiming to claim the title in a tournament that has launched careers like those of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz.

The event features a round-robin format with players divided into two groups of four. The top two from each group advance to semifinals on December 20, followed by the final on December 21. Matches are best-of-five sets, with each set won by the first player to four games and no-ad scoring to quicken the pace. Blue Group pits Tien, ranked 28th, against Spain's Martin Landaluce, Norway's Nicolai Budkov Kjaer, and Spain's Rafael Jodar. Red Group includes Belgium's Alexander Blockx, Croatia's Dino Prizmic, the United States' Nishesh Basavareddy, and Germany's Justin Engel.

Tien, 20, headlines the field after a breakout year that included his first ATP title in Metz and a runner-up finish at the ATP 500 in Beijing, where he fell to Sinner. He reached the Australian Open's...