Road to Jeddah: Mensik leads the ‘new blood’ | ATP Tour

Next Gen ATP Finals

Road to Jeddah: Mensik leads the ‘new blood’

The Czech played the Doha final in early 2024

December 16, 2024

Czech Jakub Mensik fulfilled the biggest goal of his 2024 season by qualifying for the first time for the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF. Now, at just 19 years old, he wants to lift the trophy in Jeddah.

Mensik reached his first ATP Tour final in February, defeating Andy Murray, Andrey Rublev and Gael Monfils to compete for the Doha title. That performance made him the first player born in 2005 or later to reach a tour-level final. Although he was beaten by Karen Khachanov in the final, that week allowed him to debut in the Top 100 of the PIF ATP Rankings.

“It has been incredible. I feel very proud to be able to compete against the best players at such a young age,” he said in a recording for the special Camino a Jeddah of ATP Tour. “All the little details, those little things and experiences, they are driving me in my career.”

After that week, Mensik has competed full-time on the ATP Tour. The Czech arrives in Jeddah in the Top 50 after recently reaching the quarterfinals of the Rolex Shanghai Masters – where he took a set from Novak Djokovic – and from Vienna.

The big stages of the ATP Tour are far from the municipal courts located in front of his house in Prostejov (Czech Republic), where Mensik learned to play from the age of four. Jakub was captivated from the beginning, loving tennis thanks to his undeniable talent.

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Prostejov is known for tennis, her father Michael explained, hosting one of three national tennis centers in the Czech Republic. This small town has expanded its tennis tradition thanks to the rise of Mensik, but the local hero is far from satisfied.

“Tennis gets better every year, every season, so it’s important to try to surpass the previous generation,” said Mensik, a faithful admirer of former Next Gen ATP Finals champions such as Stefanos Tsitsipas (2018), Jannik Sinner (2019) or Carlos Alcaraz (2021).

“The fans want to see new blood,” he added. “They want to know who will take over.”

A versatile player with a great serve, the Czech is looking to make his own mark at the top of the ATP Tour. And he considers Jeddah an ideal point to gain momentum.

“It is very positive that the ATP gives young people the opportunity to gain experience in one of the most beautiful tournaments on the circuit,” he said. “We’ll see what happens, but my desire is to get the victory.”