“I’ve been waiting a year to hold this trophy… It feels great”: Learner Tien reflects on back-to-back finals in Jeddah

Learner Tien celebrated capturing the Next Gen ATP Finals title, joining names like Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner—former champions of the under-20 tournament. The American defeated former junior No. 1 Alexander Blockx this Sunday 4-3(4), 4-2, 4-1, taking revenge for the final he lost in 2024.

The American had already reached the final of the Next Gen ATP Finals in 2024, falling to the Brazilian sensation Joao Fonseca. This time, Tien became the second player in the event's history to reach back-to-back finals since Alex de Minaur (2018-2019), although the Australian fell short of the title both times, losing to Stefanos Tsitsipas and Jannik Sinner respectively.

“It’s very cool to be adding my name to the list of previous winners,” said Tien after securing the trophy. “I think every player who has won this tournament has gone on to do very well, so it means a lot to be up there with those names,” added the 20-year-old, who became the 8th champion of the Next Gen ATP Finals.

The left-hander managed to amend a complicated start to the tournament, closing his participation in Jeddah with an almost perfect match. Tien debuted with a defeat in three sets against Spaniard Rafael Jodar—who was subsequently eliminated by game difference compared to Nicolai Budkov Kjaer.

Tien arrived at his next matches obliged to get the victory, and finally achieved good performances to top the Round Robin in first place, with wins against Martin Landaluce and Budkov Kjaer. In the semifinals, he took a straight-sets win against Nishesh Basavareddy, securing consecutive finals in the tournament.

This Sunday was an imposing performance, winning 85% of points with the first serve and 67% with the second. The American took advantage of his rival's 23 unforced errors and was especially effective in responding to his rival's second serves. “I’ve been waiting a year to hold this trophy… It feels great, especially after coming so close last year.”

From a defeat in the first match, Tien went on to win 12 of the last 13 sets he disputed. Since dropping his first set to Budkov Kjaer, he went on a streak of 9 consecutive sets until lifting the trophy. “If I lost one more set in that match, I would have been eliminated,” Tien said of his four-set win over the Norwegian. “After losing that first set, I won nine sets in a row, actually, so that’s cool. I’m very happy I was able to pull that off.”

The young star gave credit to his coach, former world No. 2 Michael Chang, with whom he has been working for several months since August, and who helped him get his first title in Linz a few weeks ago. “Since we started working together, him and his whole family have given me so much support,” Tien said. “Micah has been there for a lot of my tournaments… It’s always nice to have him around. It adds a fun side — it makes the matches and some of these tense moments a little bit more lighthearted.”

Tien thus ends the season with a new trophy. While it won't report points, it allows him to add financial prizes over $500,000—a great boost ahead of the 2026 season, where he will start as World No. 28 and has his place secured as a seed at the Australian Open, the first major of the season.