From 9-12 December, Tecnifibre organised a pre-season physical training camp, an initiative born from the unique “On the Road to the ATP World Tour” concept with the ATP World Tour.

Five young and hopeful players from the Tecnifibre team gathered in Bretagne in France for four days of training. The camp concentrated on performance, commitment, sharing information and training together. Russians Daniil Medvedev, No. 99 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, and Alen Avidzba along with Frenchmen Hugo Grenier, Johan Tatlot and Boris Fassbender pushed their limits during the intensive training designed by coach Patrick Chamagne.

The players participated in numerous activities, including beach soccer, paddle tennis, sand yachting, sea kayaking and sea aquagym. The goal of the camp was to discover disciplines that were very far away from tennis so that the players could step outside of their comfort zones to prepare physically and mentally for the long 2017 season ahead of them.

This was also an opportunity for members of the Tecnifibre team to not only to create a link of proximity with one another, but also to evaluate their own potential for the years to come.

Guillaume Ducruet, Sports Marketing Manager, said: “To step outside of tennis and to change their daily routines, it was interesting for us to see if they could step up to the challenge. The team experience also allowed the players to share their experiences and to motivate one another. Tecnifibre likes to be at the side of its athletes all year-round. This proximity is part of our brand culture. It is rare for these young players who are always on tour, to spend time as part of a group.”

Tecnifibre, where open-mindedness is one of the keys to success at this level, is the only brand that offers such an experience to its ambassadors: to go one step further other than to give out equipment.

Medvedev, recently winner of the second Tecnifibre “Young Guns” contest, found this experience extremely enriching. “Preparation is the most important element in tennis. You find your weaknesses, your physical ability, your mental ability. This is what prepares you for the season to come.

“My main goal for the next year is to remain in the Top 100 and, if possible, to go up into the Top 50. This is why I take preparation seriously and why I came to this camp this winter.”

Medvedev has made a good start to the 2017 season. The #NextGenATP player reached his first ATP World Tour final on Sunday at the Aircel Chennai Open (l. to Bautista Agut).

Daniil Medvedev soared 34 spots to a career-high No. 65 in the Emirates ATP Rankings as a result of reaching his first ATP World Tour final at the Aircel Chennai Open (l. to Bautista Agut). The 20-year-old #NextGenATP Russian was named the Tecnifibre Young Gun On The Road in 2016, having climbed from No. 329 to No. 98 in 2016

Roberto Bautista Agut rose one place to equal his career-high of No. 13 (10 October 2016) by lifting his fifth trophy in the Chennai final. It was fifth final of the past 52 weeks and seventh since October 2015. He fell in the 2013 Chennai final to then No. 9-ranked Janko Tipsarevic.

Grigor Dimitrov broke a title drought of more than two-and-a-half years by beating three consecutive Top 10 players – Dominic Thiem, Milos Raonic and Kei Nishikori – en route to the Brisbane International crown. Having lost his past four finals, the 25-year-old Bulgarian claimed his fifth trophy – his first since the 2014 Aegon Championships. World No. 15 Dimitrov is now at his highest ranking since 29 June 2015, when he was placed No. 11.

Dudi Sela, competing in Chennai, did not drop a set en route to his first ATP World Tour semi-final since reaching the 2014 Atlanta final. In reaching his second Chennai semi-final (also 2010), the 31-year-old Israeli rose 10 spots to No. 86 – his highest position in the Emirates ATP Rankings since 24 October 2016.

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Fifth seed Philipp Kohlschreiber brought his best tennis on Monday at the Apia International Sydney, recording a convincing 6-4, 6-4 win over a tricky opponent in Fabio Fognini.

Kohlschreiber landed 75 per cent of his first serves in the second set and controlled the baseline rallies throughout the match to prevail in one hour and 21 minutes. Next up for him is the winner of the wild card battle between Aussies Jordan Thompson and Thanasi Kokkinakis.

In other first-round matches, Australian qualifier Matthew Barton delighted the local crowd with a 7-6(3), 7-6(5) win over Kyle Edmund. In a match featuring no breaks of serve, Barton saved a set point serving at 4-5 and grabbed the final three points of the contest to prevail in one hour and 43 minutes.

Barton, ranked No. 198 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, will look to reach his first ATP World Tour quarter-final when he faces the winner between sixth seed Gilles Muller and Alexandr Dolgopolov.

Daniel Evans recovered from a mid-match lapse to move past qualifier Thiago Monteiro, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. The Brit will now play the winner of the all-Spanish battle between eighth seed Marcel Granollers and Fernando Verdasco.

Paolo Lorenzi survived an epic 7-6(4), 4-6, 7-6(5) battle against Florian Mayer. Next up for the Italian is third seed and two-time defending champion Viktor Troicki.

Gastao Elias produced the comeback of the day against Aussie qualifier Christopher O’Connell, rallying from down a set and 1-4 to record a 6-7(3), 6-4, 6-1 victory. The Portuguese player is rewarded for his efforts with a clash against top seed Dominic Thiem in the next round.

DOUBLES: The lone doubles match of the day saw Troicki/Nenad Zimonjic win their first-round match 6-3, 6-4 over Mariusz Fyrstenberg/Martin Klizan. They will play the winner between third seeds Lukasz Kubot/Marcelo Melo and Juan Sebastian Cabal/Robert Farah