5 Predictions for the 2020 ATP season
What a fantastic year 2019 turned out to be for tennis! The fans were lucky to witness some scintillating matches throughout the year, including the very last match of the season between Dominic Thiem and Stefanos Tsitsipas. The Greek won the final set tie-break to earn the ATP World Tour Finals crown on his debut.
It was an amazing end to a year and decade of fabulous tennis. 2019 was full of everything: controversies, injuries, returns, retirements and what not.
The two best players of the decade, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, finished the year as the top two ranked players and split the four Grand Slams between them. The tennis world had to say goodbye to some great players like David Ferrer, Tomas Berdych and Nicolas Almagro, who announced their retirement from the sport.
Grand Slam winners Juan Martin del Potro and Marin Cilic had to end their seasons early. Andy Murray had to undergo surgery but made a return to the sport despite rumours of retirement.
Nick Kyrgios continued to stay in the limelight with his contoversies. New faces like Daniil Medvedev emerged to provide even more competition to the top players.
Even though the 2019 season has just ended, most of us cannot wait for the 2020 season to begin. The biggest question on everybody's mind is whether the Big 3 will continue to dominate the Grand Slams, or if the NextGen, stronger than ever, will finally rise up to the challenge.
Having enjoyed a successful 2019, will Nadal finally equal or surpass Roger Federer's record for most Grand Slam titles won? Will Murray be able to compete with the top players and challenge for the big titles again?
Here are five predictions for the 2020 ATP season:
5. More new stars will emerge
In 2018, it was Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev who made their breakthrough. This year, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Daniil Medvedev announced themselves on the big stage with some brilliant performances. It is safe to say that there will be at least a couple of more players who will have a huge impact on the tour next season.
I'm particularly expecting big things from Jannik Sinner in the next couple of years. Or it could be Andrey Rublev or Alex De Minaur. It might even be Felix Auger-Aliassime or Karen Khachanov, or somebody else entirely, who starts troubling the top players or has runs to finals and semifinals of Masters 1000 events. Perhaps someone defeating any of the Big 3 players en route to a Grand Slam semifinal?
It is always exciting to see new players rise to the occasion, and I am predicting there will be a handful of those in 2020.