The ATP Next Gen Finals draw has been released, with Chun-Lin Ren as the clear favorite for the championship.

On December 14 local time, the 2025 ATP Next Gen Finals draw was revealed, featuring last year's runner-up Chun-Lin Ren and 2023 Australian Open junior champion Brox as the headline players. This year's tournament is scheduled from December 17 to 21 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The top two in each group will move on to the semifinals, playing cross elimination matches, with the final two battling for the championship. The total prize money for this year is $2,101,250, with an undefeated champion earning $539,750.

Tournament groupings (Source: ATP)

Blue Group: Chun-Lin Ren [1], Landarus [4], Budkov Shel [5], Hodar [7]

Red Group: Brox [2], Prizmic [3], Basavareddy [6], Engel [8]

Chun-Lin Ren

The first two qualifiers, Menshik and Fonseca, withdrew before the tournament. The 20-year-old American Chun-Lin Ren is the top seed, having finished as runner-up to Fonseca last year. Ren has had a breakthrough season, rising from outside the top 120 at the start of the year to No. 28 currently. He won his first career tour title in Metz, was runner-up to Sinner at the China Open, and reached the round of 16 at the Australian Open, his best Grand Slam performance to date.

The other three players in the Blue Group are first-time participants in this event. Landarus and Hodar, both from Spain and childhood acquaintances, saw Landarus qualify into the second round of this year's Cincinnati Masters, while Hodar won three Challenger titles between August and November. Budkov Shel claimed four Challenger titles this season, becoming the youngest Norwegian to win two or more Challenger tournaments.

The Red Group is led by Belgian Brox, a former junior world No. 1 who won two Challenger titles this season and recorded his first main tour win at the Cincinnati Masters. Croatian Prizmic captured two Challenger titles and reached his first tour quarterfinal at his home event in Umag. American Basavareddy is making his second consecutive appearance, having reached the semifinals in Auckland earlier this year. Menshik withdrew less than a week before the event; German Engel was a late addition, having made the quarterfinals at his home tournament in Stuttgart. Engel is the second youngest man since 1990 to win tour singles matches on three different surfaces (grass, clay, hard court, excluding Davis Cup), behind only Nadal.

Past ATP Next Gen Finals champions (no event in 2020)

2017: Hyeon Chung

2018: Stefanos Tsitsipas

2019: Jannik Sinner

2021: Carlos Alcaraz

2022: Brandon Nakashima

2023: Medevdevich

2024: Fonseca

Last year's champion Fonseca

Since its inception in 2017, the ATP Next Gen Finals have been held in Jeddah since 2023, with this year marking the final edition there. The tournament boasts a strong "success rate" among its champions: besides current world No. 1 and 2 Alcaraz and Sinner, Tsitsipas stayed in the top 10 for years, Brazilian young talent Fonseca broke into the top 30 this season, and Brandon Nakashima remains steady in the top 50.

Although this year's lineup is not star-studded—aside from top seed Chun-Lin Ren, the other seven players are still rising stars—there are several highlights worth watching:

1. Can Chun-Lin Ren live up to expectations and claim the title?

Undoubtedly, Chun-Lin Ren is the clear favorite this year, currently ranked No. 28 in the world, while the other seven players are ranked between the top 100 and 200. Whether by ranking or past results, Ren stands far above the rest, representing a "dimensional leap." Will he go one step further than last year and win this event for the first time? We eagerly await the outcome.

Nadal appeared in Jeddah last year

2. Nadal returns to Jeddah after surgery

As the ambassador of the Saudi Tennis Federation, Spanish legend Rafael Nadal has confirmed he will return to Jeddah during the event, participating in multiple activities aimed at inspiring young people locally and globally. Nadal was in the stands last year to witness Fonseca’s surprise victory. He announced last Friday that he underwent hand surgery and joked about "missing" the 2026 Australian Open. He will focus on rest and recovery, making his appearance in Jeddah a highlight to watch.

3. Basavareddy's "first coach debut"

American Basavareddy is competing in this event for the second consecutive year. For the first time, his player box will feature coach Sévara, the renowned French coach who previously worked with former world No. 1 Medvedev. The 20-year-old Basavareddy officially added Sévara to his team at the end of the year. Medvedev ended his eight-year collaboration with Sévara after this year's US Open.

4. Multi-dimensional match data presentation

Since its inception, the ATP Next Gen Finals have experimented extensively with tennis rules, including reducing changeovers, shortening second serve preparation time, eliminating warm-ups, and allowing spectators to move around. This year, there are no major rule changes, but a new "match data analysis" feature has been added, providing players, coaches, and fans with richer statistics and insights.

The following data will be displayed on court:

Traditional tennis stats, including serve points won, serve success rate, and break point performance

Player performance analysis based on rally length

Evaluation of shot quality by serve, return, forehand, backhand, and movement categories

Detailed data showing which player has the highest frequency of "active attacks," higher scoring rates during offense ("attack conversion points"), and strongest scoring ability during defense ("defensive counterattack points")

(Text and editing by Wang Fei, images courtesy of Visual China)