Five #NextGenATP Challenger Tour Players To Watch In October

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Simply over a month from now the world’s Prime-8 21-and-under gamers will compete on the coveted Intesa Sanpaolo Subsequent Gen ATP Finals. Held in Milan, Italy, gamers dream of utilizing the event as a launching pad for his or her profession and this 12 months is proving to be a detailed battle on who will qualify.

Just below 150 factors separate tenth and twentieth within the Pepperstone ATP Dwell Race To Milan, leaving the margins slim as gamers sprint to gather the utmost factors within the coming weeks. ATPTour.com appears at 5 Challenger Tour gamers to observe in October as they strengthen their hopes of being in Milan.

Ben Shelton (USA)
The lefty has been constructing upon his NCAA singles title in Might, reaching 4 semi-finals of the 5 Challenger Tour occasions wherein he has competed. Shelton, 19, completed runner-up on the ATP Challenger 80 occasions this summer season in Rome, Georgia and Chicago, Illinois.

In July, {the teenager} cruised to victory for his maiden Tour-level win in Atlanta, defeating Ramkumar Ramanthan earlier than pushing countryman John Isner to a third-set tie-break. Shelton was given a wild card into the ATP Masters 1000 occasion in Cincinnati, Ohio, the place he upset then-World No. 5 Casper Ruud in straight units.

Boasting a 14-5 Challenger match file in 2022, Shelton is because of play the following two weeks on the ATP Challenger 80 tournaments in California: Tiburon and Fairfield. The American is sixteenth within the Pepperstone ATP Dwell Race To Milan.

Ben Shelton delivers a serve on the 2022 US Open. Credit score: Al Bello/Getty Photos

Luca Nardi (ITA)
The 19-year-old is the one #NextGenATP star with three or extra Challenger titles this season: Forli-1, Lugano, and Mallorca. Nardi, who climbed to a career-high No. 142 in August, is the youngest (19 years, one month) of the 18 Italians ranked throughout the Prime 200 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. At the start of the 12 months, Nardi made new commitments to himself, which have helped him obtain success this season.

“I began coaching tougher and with extra depth. I additionally began a eating regimen and consuming higher,” Nardi advised ATPTour.com in Might. “Every little thing goes higher from that. I am attempting to be as skilled as I can. Normally, it’s the similar coaching, with possibly some further work on the forehand and backhand, however the depth is far completely different. That’s the distinction.”

Nardi, who’s thirteenth within the Pepperstone ATP Dwell Race To Milan, this weekend will try and qualify for the ATP 500 occasion in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Luca Nardi prevailed on residence soil to win the Forli-1 Challenger in January. Credit score: NEN Occasions

Matteo Arnaldi (ITA)
The 21-year-old has reached two Challenger finals this season, together with in Francavilla al Mare, the place he claimed his maiden Challenger title. On the San Marino Challenger in August, the World No. 157 didn’t drop a set till the ultimate, falling quick to Pavel Kotov. Arnaldi additionally reached the semi-finals on the Cut up and Como Challengers.

Arnaldi is certainly one of six Italian #NextGenATP children who’ve claimed a Challenger title in 2022: Nardi, Lorenzo Musetti, Flavio Cobolli, Francesco Maestrelli, and Francesco Passaro have additionally triumphed this season. Now inching nearer to his 2022 aim of being ranked within the Prime 150, Arnaldi is aiming to play in entrance of a house crowd in Milan.

“The Subsequent Gen Finals is my aim for the remainder of the 12 months,” Arnaldi advised ATPTour.com. “However I don’t wish to examine the factors each week. I similar to to play and do my finest.”

The Sanremo native, who’s 14th within the Pepperstone ATP Dwell Race To Milan, will subsequent play the Alicante and Saint-Tropez Challengers.

Matteo Arnaldi in motion on the Como Challenger. Credit score: Bettina Musatti

Shang Juncheng (CHN)
In August, the Beijing native grew to become the youngest Chinese language champion in Challenger Tour historical past. Throughout a nine-match successful streak, the 17-year-old triumphed on the Lexington Challenger and completed runner-up in Granby, Canada (l. Diallo). He’s the youngest participant to win a Challenger title since Carlos Alcaraz at Alicante in 2020.

Shang is certainly one of three Chinese language gamers ranked contained in the Prime 200, alongside Wu Yibing and Zhang Zhizhen.

Shang, 13-8 on the Challenger stage this 12 months, is twenty second within the Pepperstone ATP Dwell Race To Milan. {The teenager} will be part of fellow lefty Shelton on the Tiburon and Fairfield Challengers as he appears to qualify for Milan.

Shang Juncheng claimed the Lexington Challenger in August. Credit score: Lexington Challenger offered by Meridian Wealth Administration

Filip Misolic (AUT)
The Austrian, who’s eleventh within the Pepperstone ATP Dwell Race To Milan, surged onto the Challenger scene in Might, when he superior by way of qualifying en path to capturing the Zagreb Challenger title. The subsequent week, Misolic continued his sizzling streak as he reached the semi-finals on the Tunis Challenger (l. Brouwer).

In July, the 21-year-old made the absolute best use of a wild card on the ATP 250 occasion in Kitzbuehel. Competing in his first Tour-level occasion, Misolic made a run to the ultimate on residence soil, falling quick to Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut.

Misolic, who started the season ranked outdoors the Prime 350, reached a career-high No. 136 in August. He’s set to compete the following two weeks on the Parma and Saint-Tropez Challengers.

Filip Misolic triumphed on the Zagreb Challenger in Might. Credit score: Inga Cuzic/Zagreb Open

The fifth version of the Intesa Sanpaolo Subsequent Gen ATP Finals will happen 8-12 November. The earlier champions are Hyeon Chung (2017), Stefanos Tsitsipas (2018), Jannik Sinner (2019), and Carlos Alcaraz (2021).