Match Report
Learner Tien tops the class at Next Gen ATP Finals
20-year-old American defeats Belgian blockx
December 21, 2025
Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour
Learner Tien celebrates winning the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF crown.
By Sam Jacot
Learner Tien continued his rapid rise on Sunday in Jeddah, lifting the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF trophy and cementing his status as one of tennis’ most exciting young stars.
In the championship match at the 20-and-under event, the American defeated 20-year-old Belgian Alexander Blockx 4-3(4), 4-2, 4-1, avenging his runner-up finish at the event a year ago.
“I’m super happy,” Tien said about his 2025 season. “I was able to check a lot of boxes that I wanted to this year. I had a pretty long list of goals and achieved most of them. I’m really happy.”
The title earned Tien $502,250 in prize money and made him the third top seed to capture the title,following Stefanos Tsitsipas (2018) and Carlos Alcaraz (2021).
Twelve months earlier, Tien lost in a four-set final to Brazil’s Joao Fonseca. Since then, the left-hander has improved significantly. During the 2025 campaign, he claimed his first ATP Tour title in Metz, notched five Top 10 victories, and surged to a career-high No. 28 in the PIF ATP Rankings.
Tien will now build on that momentum in 2026, starting at next month’s Australian Open, where he became the youngest player to reach the fourth round in Melbourne since rafael Nadal in 2005. Coach Michael chang was with Tien this week and will accompany him to Australia.
“I don’t feel like he’s a coach that says a lot during matches,” Tien said of Chang. “But when he feels like I need to hear something…
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