Behold the young heroes emerging from Doha

At 2 a.m. tomorrow, the ATP 500 Doha event will conclude with the final between the world’s top-ranked Alcaraz, born in May 2003, a versatile Spanish player, and the French young talent Fils, born in June 2004 and ranked 40th globally. Watch the young heroes of Doha shine.

Only 22 years old, Alcaraz turned professional in 2018 and has since overcome many challenges, setting numerous youngest-ever records in men’s tennis: youngest Miami Masters champion, youngest Madrid Masters winner, youngest world number one, youngest year-end number one, youngest player to win ATP 500 titles on outdoor hard, indoor hard, clay, and grass courts, youngest to complete Grand Slam titles on hard, grass, and clay, youngest to win seven Grand Slam titles since the Open Era began in 1968, and the youngest ever to achieve a career Grand Slam, among others.

At just 21 years old, Fils has also shown remarkable talent. Since turning pro in 2021, he won his first ATP 250 title in Lyon in 2023, finished runner-up at the ATP Next Gen Finals that same year, and skyrocketed from world rank 251 at the start of the year to 36 by year-end, earning the ATP 2023 Best Newcomer award.

In the 2024 season, Fils continued his strong performance by reaching the Round of 16 at Wimbledon for the first time and capturing two ATP 500 titles in Hamburg and Tokyo, finishing the year ranked 20th in the world.

The 2025 season brought both great achievements and unfortunate setbacks for Fils. He reached the quarterfinals in three consecutive Masters tournaments (Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo), the only player on tour to do so. Sadly, a stress fracture in his back during the French Open forced him to end his 2025 season prematurely.

Entering the 2026 season, Alcaraz and Fils have taken very different paths on the tour until they met again in the ATP 500 Doha final.

World number one Alcaraz arrived in Melbourne without any warm-up matches, shutting out opponents in straight sets through the first five rounds. In a grueling 5-hour 27-minute semifinal, he overcame Zverev, battling through injury after winning the first two sets. In the final, after losing the first set, he rallied to win the next three, defeating Novak Djokovic—winner of 10 Australian Open titles and 24 Grand Slams—to claim his first Australian Open and complete a career Grand Slam.

After two weeks of rest, Alcaraz returned this week to lead the field at the ATP 500 Doha. While world number two and Italy’s rising star Sinner was unexpectedly eliminated in the quarterfinals by Czech newcomer Menšík (born 2005), Alcaraz reaffirmed his status among the elite and defended his world number one ranking with glory, coming back from behind to defeat Russian power hitter Khachanov in the quarters and then beating Russian star Rublev in straight sets in the semis, reaching the Doha final for the first time in his career.

Ranked 40th, Fils has not yet fully recovered from injury, withdrawing from the ATP 250 events in Hong Kong and Adelaide early in the 2026 season, and sadly missing the Australian Open as well. He made his comeback at the ATP 250 Montpellier tournament but lost in the third round to Canadian rising star Aliassime. At the ATP 500 Rotterdam event, he was defeated in the first round by eventual champion De Minaur. At the ATP 500 Doha tournament, Fils roared back fiercely, defeating last year’s semifinalist Lehečka in straight sets in the quarters and then avenging his Miami Masters quarterfinal loss by beating Menšík in two sets in the semis, advancing to the final in only his third tournament back from injury.

The young Alcaraz and Fils have met twice in their careers so far. Their first encounter was in the Monte Carlo Masters quarterfinals, where Alcaraz lost the first set 4–6 but saved seven break points in the second set, including three consecutive break points at 0–40 in the 11th game after 5–5, eventually winning 7–5. In the deciding set, after falling behind 1–3, he won five consecutive games to complete a comeback victory over Fils. Their second meeting was back-to-back at the ATP 500 Barcelona semifinals, where Alcaraz won comfortably in straight sets.

At 2 a.m. tomorrow, the ATP 500 Doha final will mark the third career meeting between Alcaraz and Fils. Witness the young heroes of Doha rise once more.

(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Qicaidou Fan)