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MIAMI (AP) — The subsequent technology of males’s tennis stays a jumble of unrealized potential.
With Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer skipping the Miami Open, the event was anticipated to carry the sport’s new faces into sharper focus. As an alternative, the outlook stays fuzzy because the clay season begins.
Sunday’s match between No. 37-ranked Hubert Hurkacz and No. 31 Jannik Sinner was the primary ATP Masters 1000 ultimate since 2003 with two gamers ranked outdoors the highest 30. Hurkacz turned the lowest-ranked champion within the ATP’s top-level collection since 2005.
In the meantime, for gamers touted as future Grand Slam champions, Miami represented a chance missed. Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev didn’t make it even to the semifinals.
“With the Massive Three absent, I believe all of the NextGen guys have been attempting their greatest to play their greatest sport, to compete as exhausting as they’ll,” Hurkacz stated. “Hopefully the spectators loved it.”
However what ought to followers make of it? Twenty-somethings have been attempting to overhaul the Massive Three for years, and no front-runner for 2021 emerged in Miami.
Medvedev, seeded No. 1 at a Masters 1000 occasion for the primary time, was upset within the fourth spherical by Roberto Bautista Agut. No. 2 Tsitsipas exited in the identical spherical with a loss to Hurkacz.
“I felt prefer it was my alternative,” Tsitsipas stated. “There was extra space for me to indicate one thing higher.”
No. 3 Zverev flopped worst of all, double-faulting 3 times on break level in a loss to No. 83-ranked Emil Ruusuvuori. No. 4 Andrey Rublev, a Russian who leads the tour with 20 wins this yr, reached the semifinals earlier than Hurkacz upset him.
This all got here after Nadal and Federer withdrew earlier than the event began on account of accidents, whereas Djokovic determined to remain dwelling in Serbia amid the pandemic.
For Hurkacz, 24, the title is by far the most important of his profession, and the primary for a Polish participant in a Masters 1000 occasion. However he gained’t be among the many favorites on the French Open.
In sum, no 20-something seems poised to wrest the mantle from the 30-somethings who’ve dominated the game for thus lengthy. Dominic Thiem gained his first main title on the U.S. Open in September, however he’s simply 5-4 this yr and skipped Miami.
“The subsequent technology nonetheless has to indicate they’ll beat the Massive Three,” Sinner stated. “The subsequent technology isn’t prepared but to win in opposition to them constantly. In some unspecified time in the future there would be the second; I don’t know when. It may be two years or 5 years, I don’t know. However the second will come.”
Maybe Grand Slam greatness will skip a technology, and will probably be somebody now a young person who supplants the Massive Three. Sinner, a 19-year-old baseline basher from Italy, took a large leap in Miami, simply his third Masters 1000 occasion.
Additionally making a splash was unseeded 20-year-old American Sebastian Korda, who reached the quarterfinals earlier than dropping to Rublev. Korda, the son of former Australian Open champion Petr Korda, is broadly thought-about one of the best hope to finish an 18-year drought in main titles for U.S. males.
He sounds extra affected person than some followers.
“My dad and mom are tremendous massive on child steps,” Korda stated. “You possibly can play tennis for thus lengthy in case you keep wholesome — for 15-plus years. Guys now are taking part in till 40; it’s unimaginable. There are a variety of years forward of me.
“I’ll all the time put my head down and hold working, and hopefully sooner or later I may obtain one thing like what my dad achieved.”
Korda and Sinner have appreciable aptitude and star attraction, as do Medvedev, Tsitsipas, Zverev and Rublev.
“The way forward for tennis appears to be like nice, as a result of the technology is altering,” Rublev stated. “The NextGen gamers, they’re totally different. They appear totally different in contrast with earlier ones. I believe they’ve charisma.”
Charisma, sure, however not but many trophies.
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Extra AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
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Comply with Steven Wine on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Steve_Wine
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