Carlos Alcaraz says he hopes one of the new initiatives being implemented at this year’s ATP Next Gen Finals will be applied to the men’s Tour in the future.
For the first time in the tournament’s history players will be allowed to interact directly with their coaches throughout matches. In the past, they have done so via a Bluetooth headset but this year will be the first time where they can do so from the sidelines. The use of on-court coaching is a topic that splits opinion in the sport. The women’s WTA Tour has allowed on-court coaching to be used for a few years. However, it is still prohibited on the main ATP Tour and at Grand Slam events. Something 18-year-old Alcaraz hopes will change in the future.
“In our sport, there is a lot of coaching,” he said during a pre-tournament press conference on Sunday. “It is really good to talk with your coach when you are playing. I think it is a good idea, at least to try it at this tournament and I think it is a good idea to use in the future. I really like having the coach on court.”
Alcaraz will be the top seed in this year’s Next Gen Finals, which has previously been won by the likes of Jannik Sinner and Stefanos Tsitsipas. The Spaniard is hoping to end his breakthrough season on a high. Earlier this year he won his maiden ATP title at the Umag Open before going on to reach the quarter-finals of the US Open.
“He is working very hard in the past two years,” Alcaraz’s coach Juan Carlos Ferrero told the ATP. ”At the beginning he was used to only playing once a day and then we started to put in more hard work and at the beginning he was confused that he had to work that hard! He is accepting all that I say, which is very nice.”
The Next Gen Finals is known for testing a series of new rules to see how players react with the possibility that they could be implemented at more tour events. This year’s edition will also feature shorter warm-ups, limited medical time outs and timed bathroom breaks.
Brandon Nakashima has been drawn in the same group as Alcaraz along with Argentina’s Juan Manuel Cerundolo and Denmark’s Holger Vitus Nodskov Rune. The American is currently at a ranking high of 63rd and has reached two Tour finals this season. He believes the innovative changes will help make the event more exciting.
“I think it is definitely a good opportunity here to try out the new format,” said Nakashima. “I think it is going to be exciting. A lot more crucial points there with no Ads and I think the sets are going to go by real quick, so I think it is going to be really exciting right from the beginning. Maybe they will try it out next year or in a couple of years on the ATP Tour.”
Showcasing the best players ranked under the age of 21 in men’s tennis, the Next Gen Finals started back in 2017. The aim of the tournament is to help promote the future stars of the game with previous winners going on to enjoy various success on the main Tour. However, Cerundolo admits that nothing is guaranteed.
“It is motivating because you see where they are ranked now and it is what we here are all trying to achieve,” Cerundolo told reporters. “But it is just one tournament. It doesn’t mean we are going to get there, so we are going to try to keep moving and play every match. We will try to get there. I am really happy to be here. I think it is a really nice experience.”
The Next Gen Finals will get underway on Tuesday.
