ATP Next Gen Finals: Brookes Leads the Breakthrough, Lerner-Chen Faces Crucial Qualifying Battle

On December 18th local time, the 2025 ATP Next Gen Finals continued in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. After an upset loss in the first round, top seed Lerner-Chen staged a comeback against fourth seed Landarus in the second round with scores of 1-4/4-1/4-3(4)/4-3(2), keeping his hopes alive to advance from the Blue Group.

Lerner-Chen

Photo: Visual China

With Menshik and Fonseca withdrawing from this year's event, Lerner-Chen entered as the only Top 30 player and last year’s runner-up, aiming for the title. However, in the first round against seventh seed Hodar, Lerner-Chen lost a tight five-set match after squandering four match points, falling 4-1/3-4(3)/4-1/2-4/3-4(4) and missing out on a strong start. Hodar, making his ATP Next Gen Finals debut and his first tour-level appearance, has won three Challenger titles this year, rising from outside the top 900 to a career-high ranking of No. 166.

After the match, Hodar said, “It was a tough battle. The court conditions were fair for both players, but I managed the crucial points better. I’m really happy to get my first win here in Jeddah. I just tried to stay persistent and trust myself. Lerner-Chen has been very consistent, so I had to keep believing and knew I’d have my chances.” However, in the second round yesterday, Hodar lost to fifth seed Budkov Sher 1-4/2-4/4-1/2-4.

After two rounds, no player from the Blue Group has secured advancement yet: Budkov Sher leads with two wins; Lerner-Chen and Hodar both stand at 1-1; while Landarus has lost both matches. Since the final group stage matches are Landarus vs. Hodar and Lerner-Chen vs. Budkov Sher, all four players still have a chance either to qualify or be eliminated.

Brookes

Photo: Visual China

In the Red Group, second seed Brookes secured back-to-back wins to advance first by defeating sixth seed Basavareddy 4-3(2)/4-3(8)/4-1 and then overcoming eighth seed Engel 3-4(7)/4-2/4-2/4-2. Third seed Prizmic lost to Basavareddy 2-4/3-4(7)/4-3(3)/2-4 on day one but bounced back in round two with a 4-1/2-4/4-3(3)/4-1 win over Engel. After two rounds, Basavareddy and Prizmic both hold 1-1 records, while Engel has suffered two defeats, though all three still have chances to advance.

Basavareddy is currently working with French coach Sevara, who ended an eight-year partnership with Medvedev in September this year. During that tenure, he guided Medvedev from a newcomer to a Grand Slam champion and world No. 1. “My team reached out to him after hearing about his split with Daniil. We felt his experience fits us perfectly, and we’re very pleased this collaboration has worked out.”

Group Qualification Outlook

Starting from 19:00 Beijing time tonight, the final round of the 2025 ATP Next Gen Finals group stage matches will take place. The Red Group will kick off with Basavareddy versus Engel, followed by Brookes facing Prizmic. In the Blue Group, the decisive battles for qualification—Landarus vs. Hodar and Lerner-Chen vs. Budkov Sher—will unfold during the evening session.

Full Schedule for December 19th