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Eight of the world's best 21-and-under players will compete in Milan
A trio of #NextGenATP leaders qualified for the Next Gen ATP Finals on Wednesday. Canada's Denis Shapovalov, Aussie Alex de Minaur and Frances Tiafoe of the U.S. joined Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas and German Alexander Zverev as players to have qualified for the prestigious 21-and-under event, to be held 6-10 November in Milan. (Zverev will not be playing in Milan because of his Nitto ATP Finals qualification.)

The 19-year-old Shapovalov qualified for the second consecutive year. He fell just short of reaching the semi-finals at the Fiera Milano last year after a breakout season that saw him become the youngest ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-finalist in history (since 1990).

The left-hander has backed up his 2017. He made another Masters 1000 semi-final in Madrid, becoming the youngest semi-finalist in tournament history. Shapovalov also reached the semi-finals at the Delray Beach Open and the Rakuten Japan Open Tennis Championships 2018 in Tokyo.

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De Minaur's 2018 rise, however, might be the most drastic of anyone on the ATP World Tour. In December, the #NextGenATP Aussie was No. 210 in the ATP Rankings. This week, the 19-year-old reached a career-high No. 31 and could be even higher when he heads to Milan, as he's defending only 30 points the remainder of the regular season.

De Minaur, then 18, started the year by making the semi-finals at the Brisbane International (l. to Harrison) and the final at the Sydney International (l. to Medvedev). He was the youngest player to reach semi-finals in consecutive weeks since Rafael Nadal at the 2005 Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.

In August, the 19-year-old De Minaur became the youngest Citi Open finalist since Andy Murray in 2006. De Minaur fell to Zverev in the Washington final, which was the youngest ATP World Tour title match since Rafael Nadal, 20, and Novak Djokovic, 19, at the 2007 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

Watch: Hewitt & De Minaur: A Perfect Combination


Tiafoe reached two ATP World Tour finals and jumped more than 60 spots in the ATP Rankings this year, from No. 108 in January to No. 45 this week.

In February, the 20-year-old won his maiden ATP World Tour title in Delray Beach, beating Juan Martin del Potro, 2017 Next Gen ATP Finals titlist Hyeon Chung, Shapovalov and German Peter Gojowczyk.

Tiafoe became the first wild-card recipient to win the title in the tournament's 26-year history, and he became the youngest American champion on tour since Andy Roddick, 19, at 2002 Houston.

In May, on the Estoril clay, Tiafoe reached his second ATP World Tour final, falling to home favourite Joao Sousa.

Eight of the world's best 21-and-under players will compete at the Next Gen ATP Finals. The top seven spots will be determined by the ATP Race To Milan, which ends 29 October, while the eighth spot will be reserved for the winner of an all-Italian qualifier tournament to be held just prior to the Next Gen ATP Finals.

More Stories Like This In: Next Gen ATP Finals 2018 Denis Shapovalov Player Features Milan Frances Tiafoe Alex de Minaur

er event. (Zverev will not be playing in Milan because of his Nitto ATP Finals qualification.)

Here are five things to know about the #NextGenATP Aussie:

1. He Made History In The U.S. Capital
In the Citi Open semi-finals in August, De Minaur was staring down four consecutive match points, down 2/6 in the second-set tie-break against 2017 Next Gen ATP Finals runner-up Andrey Rublev. Yet the Aussie saved them all and reached the ATP World Tour 500-level final, beating the Russian 5-7, 7-6(6), 6-4.

Watch De Minaur's Comeback In D.C.


The 19-year-old De Minaur became the youngest Washington finalist since Andy Murray in 2006. De Minaur fell to two-time champion Zverev in the final, which was the youngest ATP World Tour title match since Rafael Nadal, 20, and Novak Djokovic, 19, at the 2007 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

2. Aussie Legend Is In His Corner
If you were a young player looking for a mentor who's been there and won those titles, you could do hardly do better than to have two-time Grand Slam champion Lleyton Hewitt, one of the toughest competitors in recent history, in your corner. The Aussie legend works with De Minaur on and off throughout the year, but especially during the Aussie swing, Grand Slams and Davis Cup ties.

Watch Uncovered: Hewitt & De Minaur, A Perfect Combo


“He's obviously been through everything that tennis has to offer, so he knows how to deal with so many different scenarios... how to deal with expectations and pressures and, just playing big guys. It's all there. He gives me a lot of advice, and the only thing I do is take it all in,” De Minaur said.


You May Also Like: Belief, Hewitt's Advice, Propel de Minaur To Early Success
3. He Moves Fast On The Court, And While Celebrating
De Minaur, whose nickname is “Demon”, might be one of the fastest players on the ATP World Tour. He dances pretty quickly as well.



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4. He Comes From A Humble And Diverse Background
De Minaur's father, Anibal, is from Uruguay, and his mother, Esther, is Spanish. They own car washes and moved to Spain when De Minaur was five years old. The family, though, returned to Australia when he was 13, only to go back to Spain three years later. De Minaur represents his diverse background in tongue: He speaks English, Spanish and French.

5. Not Since Rafa Has Someone...
To start the year, De Minaur, then 18, made the Brisbane International semi-finals (l. to Harrison) and the Sydney International final (l. to Medvedev). He was the youngest player to reach semi-finals in consecutive weeks since Rafael Nadal at the 2005 Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell.

“It's all about me believing... I think that's finally happening and I'm very proud of even all the work I'm doing off court as well. That's, I think, really helping me on court and you can see the results now.”

Alex de Minaur has been undoubtedly one of the breakout players of the ATP World Tour these past 11 months. The 19-year-old #NextGenATP Aussie has enjoyed a season that could well be defined as a whirlwind. He started the year being World No. 208 and has improved his position a total of 18 times (!) to reach his best ATP Ranking yet, at No. 31.
His season has not gone unnoticed by anyone, and the Sydney native has been nominated for two awards at the ATP World Tour Awards Presented by Moët & Chandon: ‘Newcomer Of The Year’ and ‘Most Improved Player Of The Year', both categories chosen by his peers. To close a simply brilliant season, De Minaur will try to put the icing on the cake with the Next Gen ATP Finals crown.
Read More: De Minaur Among 2018 Newcomer Of The Year Nominees | Learn More About The Nominees For Most Improved Player Of The Year
ATPWorldTour.com unravels a dream year that began in the best possible way: with a sweet Aussie summer.
There is nothing that can match the feeling of playing at home, more so if your country has a devotion for tennis. De Minaur took that home-court advantage and made a statement run: he reached semi-finals at the Brisbane International, beating former World No. 3 Milos Raonic. One week later, De Minaur reached his first ATP World Tour final at the Sydney International, where he dazzled and was a few points away of the title (l. to Medvedev).
The local effect also served him well in his permanent residence, Alicante (Spain). At the beginning of April, De Minaur (whose mother is Spanish and his dad is Uruguayan) stood in the final of the Ferrero Challenger Open and was stopped by Pablo Andujar. The ATP Challenger Tour served as a springboard for the European summer on grass, where De Minaur reached the final in the Surbiton Trophy and most importantly of all, where he won his first ATP Challenger title at the Nature Valley Open.
In Wimbledon, sacred territory for his mentor Lleyton Hewitt, De Minaur proved that the sky is the limit and reached the third round, where he collided with World No. 1 Rafael Nadal. The first half of the season exemplified De Minaur’s frame of mind: every match is taken point by point. And each tournament is of the utmost importance, regardless of the category.
Far from remaining satisfied with what had been achieved so far, De Minaur traveled from Europe to the U.S. looking for more success. And he did not disappoint: At the Citi Open in Washington, D.C., he reached his first ATP World Tour 500 final, where World No. 3 Alexander Zverev won his second consecutive Citi Open title.
At the US Open, where De Minaur reached the third round, ATPWorldTour.com spoke to the man who accompanies the Aussie around the world: His full-time coach Adolfo Gutiérrez.
"Today, being 19 years old, he remains the same as before, nothing has changed," said the Spanish coach. "Winning matches, having fame, people knowing him... But everything is still the same. He is very humble.”
What the coach appreciates the most about De Minaur’s personality is his courage: "He is fearless.”
Gutiérrez finds in Hewitt the perfect complement for De Minaur. "I am very grateful to him because he helps us a lot by training with him, by preparing the matches... with everything. The experience of Lleyton is very good for us,“ said Gutiérrez.
"Mentally, Lleyton makes him believe that he can, when he goes out on the court to play against a higher-ranked opponent, [Lleyton] convinces him that he can win and that suits him. If someone like Lleyton tells you something like this… He really convinces him. And if he says it, there must be a reason to believe it.”
De Minaur arrives in Milan with a positive record of 24-21 and the desire to put a finishing touch to a dream season.

nderstand how Alex de Minaur, a baby-faced, slightly-built 19-year-old with a frame that barely touches six feet, has catapulted up the rankings this year, we need only look at who his mentor is.

For advice on how to punch above your weight there is surely no-one better than fellow Aussie Lleyton Hewitt, the diminutive former world No. 1 whose fist-pumping never-say-die attitude took him to two grand slams.


Hewitt - the last Australian man to win a major 16 years ago - is De Minaur's Davis Cup captain and has mentored him for the last couple of years. They even played doubles together at the Estoril Open in May.

De Minaur has been labelled Hewitt's "Mini Me", and has enjoyed a stellar year that has seen him climb from No. 208 in the world to a high of No. 31 last month. The reward for De Minaur's annus mirabilis is a place at this week's Next Gen ATP Finals, which pits the best 21-and-under players from the year against one another in Milan.

De Minaur's growing legion of fans includes Andy Murray, who tweeted in January: "I wish I was as grown up as Alex de Minaur on the tennis court, great attitude! Love watching him play."

De Minaur is mentored by former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt
De Minaur is mentored by former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt CREDIT: JULIAN SIMMONDS
When he was shown Murray's tweet, De Minaur told Telegraph Sport that he "just couldn't believe it". He describes working with his childhood hero Hewitt meanwhile as: "Incredible. Growing up and idolising him. He’s been a great mentor.

"A lot of what he does is getting me to believe in myself and that I belong here. Being young that’s important, you need to believe you deserve to be where you are. You have to keep pushing the top guys."

To get the most from the relationship, De Minaur has spent extended periods at Hewitt's home while preparing for the Australian summer swing that kicks off the season.

It was during this year's Aussie circuit that De Minaur - a former junior Wimbledon finalist - began to catch the wider tennis world's attention, reaching the semi-finals in Brisbane and Sydney in consecutive weeks.

Since then, De Minaur's progress has resembled a stock-market graph during a boom period. Highlights include reaching the third round at Wimbledon and the US Open, and the final of the Citi Open, while former top-10 players Fernando Verdasco, Milos Raonic and Gilles Simon have been among his many giant-killings.



During Wimbledon, De Minaur also picked up another famous fan, with Australian actor Hugh Jackman tweeting: "Sensational win Demon!"

To borrow one of De Minaur's favourite phrases, 2018 has been "insane". The Jackman tweet incidentally was "another level". In general, De Minaur speaks with an infectious adolescent enthusiasm.

He plays in a similar way, and it is this, supplemented by his whippet-like speed and phenomenal mental strength that enables De Minaur to overcome his physical disadvantages.

Curiously, De Minaur claims it was only recently that he developed the speed that earned him the "Demon" nickname.

"At 15 I was very clumsy, big feet and my footwork wasn’t great. I was definitely not quick," he says. "Then I don’t know, it just came. I think from not wanting to give up on any shot and trying to get to every single ball possible. Slowly from just touching the ball I got to making the ball and eventually hitting a decent defensive shot. Because I don’t have a lot of weapons I have to use my speed."

De Minaur reached a career-high ranking of No. 31 last month
De Minaur reached a career-high ranking of No. 31 last month CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES
There have even been whispers that De Minaur is quicker than Hewitt. "Ha, that’s a debate we often have," De Minaur says. "If you ask him, he’ll say he’s quicker but I’m confident."

The mental aspect of De Minaur's game meanwhile can be partly attributed to his Spanish roots. The son of a Uruguayan father and a Spanish mother, De Minaur lived in Alicante from the age of five to 13 and has since relocated there after three years in Australia.

De Minaur, who speaks fluent Spanish and French, is a fiercely proud Aussie but it was in Alicante that he met a psychologist who has profoundly altered his outlook on life and tennis.

Showing maturity well beyond his years, De Minaur realised in his mid-teens that he would need support if he was to cope with tennis's brutal mental demands.

"You have to deal with a lot of tough situations and working with a psychologist that I see and talk to very often has made a massive difference," he says.


"I call him before every match, and when I’m in Spain I see him face to face. It’s mainly if I’m feeling any emotions that I’m not comfortable with. If I’m nervous or too excited. You have to learn every single day, and try not to make the same mistakes. That’s my mentality.

"Tennis is a tough sport - a long year, a lot of matches, a lot of travelling. It's not easy so being mentally tough is a big attribute. It doesn’t come easy, you have to work on it."

De Minaur's formidable resolve can be seen in the way he handles pivotal moments. He saved four match points before beating Andrey Rublev to reach the Citi Open final in August, and at the US Open he fended off six match points against former champion Marin Cilic in a five-set defeat.

De Minaur's willingness to embrace the psychological side of the sport may explain why his attitude is so different from fellow Aussies Nick Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic. If those two seem to be permanently in detention, De Minaur is like the school head boy. Though despite their differences, De Minaur stresses he only has positive things to say about Kyrgios and Tomic.

The friendships he has cultivated with the numerous Aussies on the tour are important to De Minaur, but his main priority is continuing to improve next year. After Milan, De Minaur's focus will shift to January's Australian Open and his attempt to become the first home male champion since 1976.

Now that really would be insane.

Australian notches first victory in Milan after 55 minutes

Alex de Minaur made a strong opening statement in the last match of Tuesday’s opening day of play at the Next Gen ATP Finals. The Aussie moved past Italian wild card Liam Caruana 4-1, 4-1, 4-2 in 55 minutes.

De Minaur has now won 25 tour-level matches in 2018, which is impressive considering he began the year with just two. The second seed in Milan saved both break points he faced against Caruana, and won 51 per cent of return points to move to 1-0 in Group B play.

“It was fun. The whole week I was really looking forward to playing with this new format and it was great,” De Minaur said. “I actually didn’t feel too much of a difference. I enjoyed every second out there. The atmosphere was great and I couldn’t think of a better way to start.”

In the match prior, Frances Tiafoe was up two quick sets against Hubert Hurkacz before being pushed in a tight four-setter. But De Minaur, who reached the championship match in Sydney and Washington, D.C., earlier this season, took care of business, finishing off the lone straight-sets victory of the day.

The 19-year-old’s opponent, Caruana, carried plenty of momentum into Tuesday evening, after winning three matches in three days last week against fellow Italian 21-and-under players. But De Minaur proved too solid from the back of the court.

De Minaur will face Andrey Rublev on Wednesday and if he defeats the Russian, who he beat in the Citi Open semi-finals, in three or four sets, the Aussie will guarantee his spot in the last four in Milan. Caruana will look to join the winners’ column in a match against longtime friend Taylor Fritz.

Australian joins Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semi-finals in Milan

Alex de Minaur became the second player to guarantee his spot in the last four of the Next Gen ATP Finals on Wednesday, defeating 2017 finalist Andrey Rublev 4-1, 3-4(5), 4-1, 4-2.

“It was great. I knew coming in it was going to be a really tough match and I was going to have to play some really good tennis and not leave too many balls short because his forehand is seriously one of the most dangerous weapons out there on the Tour,” De Minaur said. “I’m really happy with my win. I thought I executed my gameplan really well and served really well.”

De Minaur came out swinging, losing just three service points in the first set. And despite a hiccup in the second-set tie-break, the Aussie was broken just once in the match, while he broke the Russian four times to earn a berth in the semi-finals.

“It’s not over yet. Every match counts,” De Minaur said. “I’m very happy with my win today and it’s been a great year, but tomorrow’s another day and you’ve got to get back out there and keep doing the same.”

De Minaur, who is at a career-best No. 31 in the ATP Rankings, is the second seed here in Milan. And he will look to complete round-robin play undefeated on Thursday evening when he plays fourth seed Taylor Fritz. The pair has not faced off in a FedEx ATP Head2Head match, but De Minaur defeated Fritz earlier this year at an ATP Challenger Tour event in Surbiton.

While Rublev, the 2017 Umag champion, will be disappointed, he is 1-1 in Group B play. The fifth seed beat Fritz in a five-set thriller on Tuesday, and he will try to earn his second win at the Fiera Milano this year when he clashes against home favourite Liam Caruana.