The Italian Jannik Sinner He has found the point of maturity of a Grand Slam champion at the age of 22, adding the Australian Open to the Davis Cup. At 19, Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz opened his account with a US Open and the status of youngest world No. 1 in history. At 20 he also already has a Wimbledon.
The danish Holger Rune, of the same vintage (2003), he continues in a hurry seeing how those are ahead of him. The coaches’ dance has ended up recovering one who decapitated, the Frenchman Patrick Mouratoglou.
Sinner and Alcarazwith the attentive collaboration of Ruen, aimed at the creation of a ‘Big 3’ to replace the genuine one made up of Novak Djokovic, Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer. Between the three, 66 Grand Slams, 24, 22 and 20, respectively.
But there are more opponents to bidding for the gap that the three largest will end up leaving. The generations of those born in 2005 and 2006 are already giving something to talk about this week. Like Sinner, Alcaraz and Rune, they have been watched since they were children, because their progression has not stopped, they have titles or junior Grand Slam finals. It remains to take the definitive step to professionals, to the elite.
The Czech Jakub Mensik18 years old, had already been seen in the ATP, but this week he entered the final in Qatar, leaving behind Alejandro Davidovich, Andy Murray, Andrey Rublev y Gael Monfils. In only his third high level ‘pro’ tournament.
The 17-year-old Brazilian boy Joao Fonseca He has had a triumphant entry into the ATP in Rio, where he will play in the quarterfinals.
The Croatian Dino Prizmic18, presented his credentials by playing against Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open.
The Chinese Juncheng Shang19, is also on the list despite being knocked down by Carlos Alcaraz in Melbourne recently.
The French Arthur Fils y Luca Van Assche (19, both from 2004) are sub-19 already consolidated in ATP, although still far from the figures. Among the Spaniards, in the Race to Jeddah, the U-19 Masters, are Dani Merida19 and No. 10, and Martin Landalucejust turned 18 years old and number 12.
1
Jakub Mensik
Czech Rep., 18 years old, No. 116 ATP
Qualified for the final in Doha, he made sure to be the first in 2005 to enter the top-100. Admirer of Djokovic, who invited him to his house in 2022. He is the youngest player to beat a top-5 (Rublev) since Alcaraz in the 2021 US Open. He was a finalist at the Junior Australian Open in 2022. He surpassed the previous 2024, leading Hurkacz to a fifth set in the second round of the main draw. He has won 15 of his 18 matches this season.
2
John Fonseca
Brazil, 17 years old, number 636
This week in Rio he managed to win his first ATP match, after having debuted with a loss in the same tournament last year. World No. 1 under-18, US Open champion in the category, won the first Junior Davis Cup for Brazil. He surprised in the last ATP Finals in his training with world figures. Lots of potential. He has all the foundations to succeed, and a lot.
3
Dino Prizmic
Croatia, 18 years old, number 155
The current Roland Garros junior champion took Novak Djokovic to the limit in his professional debut, the first round of the Australian Open, with four sets in as many hours. The Serbian is his idol, as is the case with Mensik. Interesting to see how his game evolves. He is complete, but he has proven to be better at counterattacking than taking the initiative.
2024-02-23 19:57:34
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