Friends collide on Saturday as American Learner Tien faces countryman Nishesh Basavareddy and Alexander Blockx meets Nicolai Budkov Kjaer for a place in the championship match at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF.
Close friends Blockx and Budkov Kjaer square off in the first semi-final at 7 p.m local time, followed by the all-American battle between last year’s finalist Tien and sixth seed Basavareddy, not before 9 p.m.
It is a memorable stage for players who grew up crossing paths on the junior circuit, and are now reunited in Jeddah, standing across the net from each other and within one win of a final berth at the 20-and-under event.
[1] Learner Tien (USA) vs [6] Nishesh Basavareddy (USA) [not before 9 p.m.]
The only players in this year’s field who are making their second consecutive appearance, Tien and Basavareddy bring added experience to the semi-finals. The lefty Tien cracked the Top 30 of the PIF ATP Rankings in November following his maiden tour-level triumph in Metz.
The 20-year-old has built his winning streak to eight consecutive matches and will put that to the test against Basavareddy, who he defeated 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-2 at this year’s Wimbledon, their lone Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting.
“We’ve played a decent bit since we were very young,” Tien said of Basavareddy. “We grew up pretty close to each other, both from the States, so we’d see each other at a lot of Challengers. It’s been cool for him to make his way up as I’ve been making my way up. It’s great to see a familiar face at these tournaments, so I think It’ll be cool to share the court with him.”
The clash between Tien and Basavareddy promises to be a tug of war in court coverage and a life-size chess match from the baseline. Both players have relatively new voices in their corner. Basavareddy this month announced his new partnership with Gilles Cervara, a renowned coach who most recently worked with Daniil Medvedev. Former World No. 2 Michael Chang coaches Tien, after officially joining the lefty’s team in August.
[2] Alexander Blockx (BEL) vs [5] Nicolai Budkov Kjaer (NOR) [starts at 7 p.m.]
Both players possess the ability to rip the felt off the ball from the first strike, each averaging 11 aces per match this week, according to Infosys ATP Stats. Control of the baseline will be paramount as Blockx and Budkov Kjaer fight to dictate rallies in their maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head clash. In the first-to-4 format, there is no margin for error.
“I think I have a big serve,” Budkov Kjaer said before the tournament. “That is the key thing for me if I want to beat the best guys, I have to have that in the toolbox.”
Blockx and Budkov Kjaer are close friends who both claimed junior Slam titles before transitioning to professional tennis. Blockx won the 2023 Australian Open boys’ singles event — defeating Tien in the final — while Budkov Kjaer captured the 2024 Wimbledon junior crown.
The second seed Blockx is into the semi-finals after posting a perfect 3-0 record in round-robin action. Budkov Kjaer began the week 2-0 before suffering a four-set loss to Tien on Thursday. Budkov Kjaer’s head-to-head win against Rafael Jodar was enough for the 19-year-old to secure second place over the Spaniard, who also finished 2-1 in Blue Group. The Oslo native, one of six players to win a season-leading four ATP Challenger titles this season, is the second Norwegian (Casper Ruud) to compete at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF.
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