Big wins by rising ATP stars in 2018 mark true arrival of Next Gen
With Alexander Zverev defeating Novak Djokovic in the ATP World Tour Finals, he not only managed to win the most important title of his career but was also able to cement his place as the next big thing in tennis. He became the first person to defeat Federer and Djokovic in the same tournament since Andy Murray did it at the London Olympics 2012.
It was not only the win that impressed the whole world but also the manner in which Zverev won. He was doing to Djokovic what Djokovic has done to his opponents throughout the course of his career. After gruesome rallies, we could clearly see that the World No. 1 was struggling for breath. He was taking extra time after the points to slow down the game, something we are not used to seeing.
In the end, Zverev won the match pretty comfortably and it was perhaps the first of his many trophies at the Nitto ATP Finals. Zverev, who has been widely billed as the future of the tennis world, has won some big titles over the course of his short career but has failed to perform in the Grand Slams, having failed to go past the quarter-final stages. This win should clearly boost his morale and he would be looking forward to the 2019 season.
It was also a breakthrough season for the likes of Khachanov, Tsitsipas, Coric, and Medvedev. Tsitsipas impressed particularly in the second half of the season. He became the first player since Djokovic to reach a Masters final at a young age of 19.
He ended the year on a strong note by winning the ATP Next Gen Finals at Milan. Khachanov also had a year to remember as he won his first Masters title at Paris. His performances throughout the year showed us that the big-serving Russian is a force to be reckoned with in the future and would be a player to watch in the 2019 season.
Borna Coric also showed us why he is so highly rated when he defeated Federer on 2 occasions, at Halle and in Shanghai. This was also the first year when not a single Grand Slam final was contested between the so-called 'Big Four' of tennis and all these results show us that the next generation of tennis players are already here and ready to take over the world of tennis.