The five candidates to be the coach of the year at the 2024 ATP Awards | ATP Tour

Awards

The five candidates to be the coach of the year

Malisse, Planque, Russell, Stine and Trotman, in the fight for the distinction

December 03, 2024

Before champions are crowned in front of packed stadiums on the ATP Tour, they are forged on the practice court under the watchful eye of their coaches, who are often working in the background and happy to catapult their players. At the 2024 ATP Awards, our five Coach of the Year nominees take center stage.

This year’s nominees are Xavier Malisse (Alexei Popyrin’s coach), Emmanuel Planque (Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard), Michael Russell (Taylor Fritz), Brad Stine (Tommy Paul) and James Trotman (Jack Draper). The nominees and winner in this category are voted on by other coaches.

The ATP Awards winners will be announced during Awards Week, which begins on Monday, December 9.

Xavier Malisse (Alexei Popyrin)
As part of Popyrin’s coaching team alongside Neville Godwin, Malisse, a former Top 20 in the PIF ATP Rankings, has helped the Australian rise to the elite this season. Under the tutelage of Malisse and former Top 100 player Godwin, Popyrin won the biggest title of his career at the ATP Masters 1000 in Cincinnati and broke into the Top 25 for the first time.

“Neville and I worked a lot on the backhand. We’ve been working on more variety, cutting a little bit and then working on the serve,” said Malisse, who also thanked fitness trainer Evan Jenkins and physical therapist Valentin Hollier for improving Popyrin’s strength.

Malisse and Godwin also emphasized patience with Popyrin, encouraging him to work more on the points and attack at the right time.

Malisse’s training style is explained by himself: “Neville and I are a little different. When we’re at the match, Neville can be a little more intense sometimes, talking to Alexei. I stay more relaxed, I try to keep emotions under control, which is not always easy. But I like to say little things at the right time. “I think training is knowing when to say something.”

Emmanuel Planque (Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard)
Planque guided 21-year-old Mpetshi Perricard to a breakout season, in which the Frenchman won his first two ATP Tour titles (Lyon, Basel) and broke into the Top 30 of the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time.

“Giovanni had an excellent 2024 season, managing to improve his playing week after week,” Planque said, pointing to the four tournaments (including three on the ATP Challenger Tour) that Perricard won from February to May. “He is starting to get familiar with high-level matches. The end of the season sent us this message by winning in Basel. However, we are aware that we still have a lot of work to do to one day be among the best players.”

Mpetshi Perricard was also nominated for an ATP 2024 award, in the Most Improved Player category of the season.

Planque’s training style in his own words: “It is never really easy to define your way of working. “Certainly, I am demanding and believe strongly in the values ​​of the job, but in fact, I simply hope to be a humane, fair and respectful coach to the athletes I work with.”

Michael Russell (Taylor Fritz)
Russell helped Fritz reach his first Grand Slam final at the US Open, as well as his first title match at the Nitto ATP Finals. After posting a 17-4 record at Grand Slams, more than doubling his previous record for major victories in a year, the American finished the season at No. 4 in the PIF ATP Rankings, the highest of his career. .

When asked what aspect had the biggest impact on Fritz’s game this season, Russell’s response was indicative of his approach to training: “I think there’s some impact on all parts of his game to continue to get physically stronger. and more explosive on and off the court, to feel more comfortable finishing points on the net, as well as to have more confidence in pressure situations and stages.”

Russell’s coaching style in his own words: “My coaching style would be a mix of holistic, democratic and autocratic. You have to have open communication and be empathetic, while creating structure and accountability. Taylor and I have a very good synergistic relationship.”

Brad Stine (Tommy Paul)
Stine helped Paul win three titles this season (Dallas, Queen’s Club, Stockholm) after the American entered 2024 with just one ATP Tour trophy to his name. Those three winning weeks, plus a final race in Delray Beach, led Paul to finish the year at No. 12 in the PIF ATP Rankings, the highest of his career.

Stine feels his biggest impact on Paul this season was in his “commitment to his identity as a player and his mental toughness.”

Stine’s training style in his own words: “Collaborative.”

James Trotman (Jack Draper)
Trotman was at Draper’s side during the Briton’s breakout season, who in 2024 won his first two tour-level titles in Stuttgart and Vienna. Draper, who will turn 23 on December 22, will finish at a career-high No. 15 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

“I think the biggest way I helped Jack with his tennis this season was playing more aggressively, especially in the most important moments of the matches,” Trotman said of his season alongside the British number one.

“In those situations, Draper has the ability to play to win.”

Draper was also nominated for a 2024 ATP award, in the season’s Most Improved Player category.

Trotman’s training style in his own words: “My training style would be based on sticking to a plan and not being too reactive, given the nature of the Tour with its ups and downs. Try to identify those areas of development and be consistent with the work to achieve those improvements over time.”