American faces Fonseca or Van Assche in Next Gen championship match

Learner Tien became the third American to reach the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF title match on Saturday in Jeddah, where he beat long-time friend Alex Michelsen 2-4, 4-2, 1-4, 4-0, 4-1.

Michelsen and Tien have developed a strong friendship in the past decade, training together in California and competing in Fortnite battles and table tennis duels. However, their off-court relationship was put to one side in Saudi Arabia, where they produced an entertaining battle in front of a lively crowd and former No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings Rafael Nadal, who was courtside at King Abdullah Sports City.

Competing in their first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting, little separated the Americans across the opening three sets. Michelsen powered down serves to dominate Tien physically at times, but the 19-year-old responded, outmanoeuvring the 20-year-old with an array of stunning angles and aggressive groundstrokes to pull Michelsen from corner to corner.

However, from the start of the fourth set, Tien dominated. The American, who won seven straight games, locked in on the baseline exchanges and rode momentum in the fifth set to advance after one hour and 36 minutes.

"I can't put it into words right now," Tien said following his win after hitting 21 winners. "I am really happy with the win but I hate it was against him, but that is just how it goes. I started smiling when I came out here and saw him on the other side of the net, but I am really happy to get through and think I played really well."

 

Tien, who went 2-1 in Blue Group play, will face Brazilian Joao Fonseca or Frenchman Luca Van Assche in the final at 8 p.m. local time on Sunday.

"It would be amazing to win. I have one more to go, so I hope I can get it done. Luca [Van Assche] I have never played before but he is a great player. I played Joao a few days ago and it was a rough one, so I think they are both great. There is no easy matches. To have another shot at Joao after losing earlier this week would be pretty cool."

Nadal is spending three days at the Next Gen ATP Finals and he spent time chatting with Michelsen, Fonseca and Jakub Mensik on Friday. The 38-year-old Spaniard was in the stands for part of the semi-final.

Tien won three ATP Challenger Tour titles in 2024, the most of any player in the Jeddah field. The 19-year-old defeated Mensik and Arthur Fils in Blue Group play to finish second behind Fonseca. He is the first player in tournament history to defeat the Top 3 seeds.

Tien started the season outside the Top 450 in the PIF ATP Rankings but has enjoyed a rapid rise in 2024. Alongside his Challenger success, he reached the quarter-finals at the ATP 250 hard-court event in Winston-Salem.

Tien attended University of Southern California and is the second former collegiate player to reach the title match at the event after Nakashima in 2022.

Michelsen went 0-3 in Jeddah last year but returned this week as a more complete player. At a career-high No. 41 in the PIF ATP Rankings, Michelsen this season reached tour-level finals in Newport and Winston-Salem.

"To go 3-0 in the group, I was very happy with that," Michelsen said. "Today I didn't play the tennis when I needed and my buddy Learner stepped up when he needed.

"It was a great experience at the event this year. They changed a couple things to make it more enjoyable and winning also helps with that."

Alex Michelsen in action in Jeddah on Saturday.
Alex Michelsen in action in Jeddah. Photo Credit: Peter Staples/ATP Tour

Did You Know?
Tien is the third American to reach the final in tournament history (since 2017). Brandon Nakashima lifted the trophy in 2022 and Sebastian Korda advanced to the final in 2021 (l. to Alcaraz).

What is the prize money for the Next Gen ATP Finals Presented by PIF IN $US?
The prize money for the Next Gen ATP Finals Presented by PIF is $2,050,000.
Undefeated Champion: $526,480
Final Win: $153,000
Semi-Final Win: $113,500
Each Round-Robin Match Win: $36,660
Participation Fee: $150,000
Alternate: $15,000

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