He had assured that he would not return, probably because he did not know the rules well, but a year after his defeat in the final against the Serbian Hamad Medjedovic (3-4 [6]4-1, 4-2, 3-4 [9]4-1), Arthur Fils is back in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, for the Next Gen Finals, the Masters which brings together the eight best players under the age of 21. “I came because it’s a mandatory ATP event”justifies the 20-year-old Frenchman, who will also not spit on the attractive prize money at stake, 150,000 dollars for his participation alone and up to 526,000 dollars in the event of final success without any defeat along his route. “I take this tournament as a week of training,” evacuates the 20th in the world who, like last year, included the Saudi event at the heart of his winter preparation, before starting his season at the ATP 250 in Hong Kong in twelve days.
