Players Raring to Go as Jeddah Takes Centre Stage at 2025 Next Gen ATP Finals Presented by PIF

(MENAFN- bursonglobal) Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, 16 December 2025: Eight future stars of m’n’s tennis are raring to go at the 2025 Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, with the flagship tournament set to get underway tomorrow.
Taking place from 17–21 December, the five-day tournament will bring together eight of the best players aged 20-and-under on the ATP Tour, based on the season-long PIF ATP Race to Jeddah standings.
With just one day to go, fans in Saudi Arabia and around the world have the chance to witness the next generation of tennis stars as they compete in a fast-paced and innovative format that includes four-game sets and the introduction of new technologies to bring viewers closer to the action.
Now in its third edition in Jeddah, the Next Gen ATP Finals underline the Kingdom’s growing role at the heart of the global tennis calendar, and the Saudi Tennis Federati’n’s long-term ambition to grow participation and develop talent across the Kingdom.
This ’ear’s field is headlined by rising American star Learner Tien, who is the highest-ranked player in the draw following a breakthrough season that saw him claim his first ATP Tour title and climb to a career-high No. 28 in the PIF ATP Rankings. The 20-year-old returns to Jeddah having reached las’ year’s final and will be aiming to go one step further this time around.
Tien sa“d: “I'm excited. The format is obviously different than what we play all year, so no one's really used to it. The matches are pretty exciting, it's fun to play, and fun”to watch.”
Tien leads the Blue Group and will face Spanish fourth seed Martin Landaluce, Norwegian fifth seed Nicolai Budkov Kjær, and Spanish seventh seed Rafael Jodar. Meanwhile, the Red Group comprises Belgian second seed Alexander Blockx, Croatian third seed Dino Prižmćć, American sixth seed Nishesh Basavareddy, and German eighth seed Justin Engel.
The group stage is played in a round-robin format, with the top two advancing to the knockout semi-finals. The tournament opens at 2pm on Wednesday, with the Blue Group taking to the court in the afternoon session. PžiŦ#263;mić takes on Basavareddy in the first match, followed by Blockx versus Engel. The evening session – not before 7p– – sees Tien take on Jodar before Landaluce and Budkoæ Kjær close the show.
Blockx said: “These are the eight best players under 20. If you see in the past, the guys that won here, they did some big things later in their career and are still doing great things. This tournament shows you that you're on the right track and confirms all the hard wor”.”
Indeed, the eventual winner of the 2025 Next Gen ATP Finals will join a list of illustrious champions, which includes current superstars Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Landaluce, who was an alternate at the 2024 tournament, said: “I'm very excited. If I can play at a very good level, I'm going to be good at this tournament, I'm going to win matches. My level is so high right now. I'll try to enjoy it and I'm going to try to give my”best.”
Since making history in 2023 as the first professional tennis event staged in Saudi Arabia, the Next Gen ATP Finals have played a key role in accelerating t’e sport’s development in the Kingdom. It sits alongside a rapidly expanding calendar of elite international events, including the WTA Finals in Riyadh, and from 2028 a new ATP Masters 1000 tournament.

These international competitions are complemented by a sustained local strategy led by the Saudi Tennis Federation, aimed at increasing participation, developing local talent pathways, and expanding access to tennis nationwide.
Among the various community initiatives includes the ‘Tennis for A’l’ program, in collaboration w‘th ‘Sports for All[, which introduced tennis to more than 53,000 children in 2025. Meanwhile, female participation increased by 24% in the 12 months between the 2024 and 2025 WTA Finals Riyadh. At the elite level, there are now a record 82 Saudi players who hold an international ranking.
Fans attending the 2025 Next Gen ATP Finals can expect five days of high-quality competition, cutting-edge technology, and an atmosphere that reflects Saudi ’rabia’s passion for hosting world-class sport. With the eyes of the tennis world turning to Jeddah, the stage is set for another memorable chapter in the to’rnament’s young history.

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