Childhood swings echo in Jeddah's chase

Under the glare of a 2025 season thick with Challenger scrambles and Masters 1000 qualifiers, the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF in Jeddah pulls young talents into its orbit like a distant star. Rei Sakamoto, Federico Cina, and Nicolai Budkov Kjaer, all under 20 and climbing the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah rankings, trace their drive back to those hazy childhood afternoons where a single clean hit could light up the world. Those pure, pressure-free moments on home courts or bleachers now serve as mental anchors, steadying them through the pro tour’s relentless tempo of jet-lagged practices and high-stakes baselines.

Early hits build quiet resilience

For Sakamoto, the rush arrived at six on Japan’s modest courts, where a soaring smash cut through the air with electric satisfaction, the ball’s flight a fleeting taste of power that hooked him deep. Family snapshots capture an even earlier start at three, racquet in tiny hands, though the memory fades—yet that foundational grip has evolved into the steady forehand he unleashes in qualifiers, blending flat pace with subtle underspin to vary depths on hard courts. Cina’s path wound through Italy’s family lanes, beginning at home with his grandparents before shifting to the local club just 10 minutes away, where by five or six he logged full days rallying, the rhythm imprinted by his father, coach to US Open finalist Roberta Vinci.

“I started with my grandpa and grandma, at home,” Cina shared. “So the first time was with them, also with my dad, he’s a coach, so at the tournaments, I always played with him. But the club I first played at was near my home, about 10 minutes away. I played at home in the first years and then when I was around five or six, I started going to the club and stayed there all day.”

Budkov Kjaer‘s Norwegian ties ran through his father’s federation role, overlapping Casper Ruud’s junior surge and making tennis feel like destiny rather than choice, those early exposures shaping his calm transitions from baseline crosscourts to net volleys. Now at 19 with four ATP Challenger Tour titles this year, he channels that innate ease into matches, adjusting slices for low bounces on indoor surfaces that echo his home training. These origins, stripped of scorelines and scouts, forged an intuitive ball feel that buffers the tour’s grind, from dawn warm-ups to evening tape sessions.

Idol views ignite bold ambitions

Sakamoto‘s spark flared watching Kei Nishikori battle in the US Open final, the scoreline lopsided against Cilic but the Japanese veteran’s deep run a revelation of speed and angles—countering blasts with inside-out forehands that sliced through defenses, proving national stars could thrive on global stages. That viewing shifted his self-view, fueling confidence as he qualified for Masters 1000 events in Miami and Shanghai this season, his Cary Challenger win a step toward emulating such resilience with precise 1–2 patterns off the serve. Cina absorbed the pro world’s pulse young, trailing his father to Slams and Masters 1000s, the roar of crowds and crack of baseline exchanges embedding a passion that now powers his main-draw upsets, like those first-round triumphs in Miami and Madrid where clay’s grip let him loop topspin before down-the-line finishes.

Budkov Kjaer, sixth in the live race and fresh off the 2024 Boys’ singles title at Wimbledon, recalls the 2018 final between Djokovic and Anderson as a turning point—the Centre Court’s verdant hush and all-white elegance stirring a vow to return as a player, its grass tempo demanding quick inside-in approaches he now refines for varied surfaces. He recalls tells ATPTour.com.

The next class of players is arriving

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— Next Gen ATP Finals (@nextgenfinals) September 26, 2025

These spectator highs, vivid amid the 2025 circuit’s demands, act as psychological resets, the idols’ poise under fire reminding them of tennis’s magnetic pull beyond mere results, sharpening focus for Jeddah’s fast-paced format.

Season strides honor youthful dreams

Reflecting on his ATP 136 ranking and 50 wins this year, Budkov Kjaer pictures his junior self flashing a grin at the haul, oblivious to the travel’s bite or the need to tweak grips for Shanghai’s humidity, yet grateful for that ignorance as a shield against doubt. Cina feels the Masters 1000 rhythm settling in, Madrid’s red dust more welcoming than Miami’s zip for his steady backcourt game, each event building comfort in reading opponents’ tendencies mid-rally. Sakamoto gauges his progress against Nishikori’s early ATP title at 18, the Challenger breakthrough in Cary a solid marker though the idol’s shadow stretches long, pushing him to layer underspin returns with aggressive net poaches.

“I remember watching Kei Nishikori in the US Open final. Cilic destroyed him,“ Sakamoto said. ”But just watching him playing, going so deep in the tournament was awesome to watch. He inspired me a lot. That gave me the confidence that Japanese can be good tennis players, great tennis players. That’s the match.”

“My young junior me would probably give me a high five and say, ‘Not bad!' Back then, I had no idea what it really takes, which was maybe a blessing,” Budkov Kjaer reflects. “But if you told junior-me I’d be ranked ATP 136, winning 50 matches and four Challenger titles in my first year as a pro, I think he’d be smiling pretty wide.” Their arcs from backyard joys to pro pressures highlight the mental weave of sport, where early elation sustains the tactical edge for December’s clash.

As these three press on, the narrative expands on 28 October 2025 with Learner Tien, Nishesh Basavareddy, and Justin Engel detailing their tour acclimation, promising fresh layers to the under-20 evolution. For deeper looks, explore more on Sakamoto here, Budkov Kjaer here, and Cina here.