Mensik, Fonseca, Tien the #NextGenATP stars of 2025
Jakub Mensik, Joao Fonseca and Learner Tien grabbed the headlines among the #NextGenATP stars in 2025, winning big titles, earning Top 10 wins and climbing to career-highs in the PIF ATP Rankings.
Re-wind to December 2024 and all three competed at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF in Jeddah, where Fonseca defeated Tien for the title. A few weeks later and the trio showed the Tour they were ready to play at the top level in Australia .
Tien enjoyed a fourth-round run at the Australian Open to become the youngest player to reach that stage since Rafael Nadal in 2005. Fonseca and Mensik both clinched Top 10 wins, with the former upsetting Andrey Rublev and the latter Casper Ruud.
Into February and Fonseca’s potential boiled into a big moment in Buenos Aires. The then-18-year-old Brazilian lifted his maiden ATP Tour title at the 250, becoming the youngest South American champion in the ATP Tour era (since 1990).
“Unbelievable week, even in Argentina, there are some Brazilians cheering for me,” an emotional Fonseca said following his final victory against Francisco Cerundolo. “That’s just amazing. Every Brazilian, everyone from their country wants this support from your own country. For me, this [moment] that I’m living is just unbelievable.”
In March, the #NextGenATP train kept moving. After Fonseca earned just his second win at an ATP Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells, Mensik made history in Miami, where he stunned Novak Djokovic to win the trophy.
The then-19-year-old Czech, who also beat Jack Draper, Arthur Fils and Taylor Fritz en route to the crown, was the second-youngest titlist in tournament history behind Carlos Alcaraz and first player from his country to win a Masters 1000 trophy since Tomas Berdych triumphed in Paris in 2005.
“It feels incredible,” Mensik said in his on-court interview after becoming the ninth-youngest Masters 1000 champion in history. “It was probably the biggest day of my life and I did super, which I’m really glad [about], to show the performance and keep the nerves outside of the court before the match. I feel just super happy and I think that the feelings will come later.”
Mensik backed up his first tour-level title in Miami by reaching the quarter-finals at the Masters 1000 event in Madrid in April and the fourth round in Rome. Fonseca further demonstrated his clay-court credentials by advancing to the third round at Roland Garros. Onto the grass in the European summer and Tien soared to his second tour-level quarter-final of the season in Mallorca, with Mensik and Fonseca both reaching the third round at Wimbledon.
During the North American swing, Tien earned three straight-set wins to book his spot in the fourth round at the Masters 1000 event Toronto, where he lost to good friend Alex Michelsen. Fonseca also impressed on the hard courts, advancing to the third round in Cincinnati, where he recorded a Top 20 win against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
While Mensik and Fonseca had tasted success earlier in the season, Tien’s biggest moments arrived in the final two months of the year. The lefty reached the final at the ATP 500 event in Beijing, taking out Cerundolo, Flavio Cobolli, Lorenzo Musetti and Daniil Medvedev in an impressive run. The 20-year-old American then advanced to the fourth round at the Masters 1000 in Shanghai before he finally captured his first ATP Tour title in Metz in November. By triumphing in France, Tien became the first American teenager to win an ATP Tour title since Andy Roddick, 19, in 2002.
“I never take it for granted, just coming out here and competing. So, holding this trophy just means the world to me. And I’m just really grateful,” Tien said during the trophy ceremony. “I want to thank my team, the ones that are here, the ones that are at home, for all the support, for everything this whole year and always, it means the world to me.”
During Tien’s success, Fonseca also enjoyed another major moment. The 19-year-old clinched the crown at the ATP 500 event in Basel in October to become the first Brazilian to win a title above ATP 250 level since Gustavo Kuerten in 2001. He was also the third-youngest player to claim an ATP 500 title since the series began. In a standout year, Mensik climbed to a career-high No. 16, Fonseca No. 24 and Tien No. 28.
Other #NextGenATP stars Alexander Blockx, Dino Prizmic, Martin Landaluce, Nicolai Budkov Kjaer, Nishesh Basavareddy and Rafael Jodar will compete in Jeddah. Budkov Kjaer won four ATP Challenger Tour titles in 2025, Jodar three, Blockx and Prizmic two and Landaluce one. Basavareddy’s best result came at the ATP 250 event in Auckland, where he advanced to the semi-finals.
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