The 2025 ATP season is now just a few short weeks away, as fans anticipate another thrilling year of action.
2024 saw a changing of the guard on the ATP Tour, as two stars took charge at the top of the game, winning all four Grand Slam titles.
Jannik Sinner won the Australian Open and US Open, his first two Grand Slam titles, as he reached world number one this year.
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World number three Carlos Alcaraz won the French Open, before defending his Wimbledon crown against Novak Djokovic.
Djokovic won Olympic Gold in 2024 but failed to take home an ATP title for the first time in 19 years, as he fell to seventh in the world rankings.
Whilst there has clearly been a change in the rankings in 2024, one former ATP star says that he has noticed a real change in the way tennis is played.
Tomas Berdych says there is a significant change happening on the ATP Tour
Former world number four Tomas Berdych spoke to Tennis Majors, where he revealed the change happening on the ATP Tour that he noticed recently.
“I think the game has changed, definitely,” he said.
“I would say the game gets less creative, if you look at the top 10 guys, you don’t see many differences between them.
“So that’s my point, I’m not saying if it’s good or bad, it’s how it is because it’s definitely a whole new generation that has basically taken over men’s tennis, and that’s the way they play and compete.”
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The Czech star went on to say whether he would like to have been able to compete in this ‘new era’ of men’s tennis.
“If you ask me if I would be able to play or if I would like to put my younger self against them, then I would definitely like to,” said Berdych.
“It would also be a nice experience to play with all these guys.
“These comparisons are always very tough because they are not going to happen, so we can only debate about them, there are new guys and new styles.”
Berdych also touched on what he thinks is currently the biggest rivalry in men’s tennis.
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“We need a rivalry to be there: it’s good for tennis,” he said.
“The biggest one so far is [Carlos] Alcaraz – [Jannik] Sinner, and only like that can they become better players.
“If there were only a Sinner, then it would be difficult to keep the motivation and anger in the game, so I think it’s good.
“I hope there will soon be another one and it will be a good time for tennis too.”
How good was Tomas Berdych compared to current top ATP stars?
Many argue that Berdych would’ve won a Grand Slam title had he been born into a less competitive era in tennis, rather than challenging the likes of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Andy Murray in their primes.
Berdych believes that he gave it all he had considering the level of competition.
“If you look at the players that I’ve been competing around, then it is how it is,” he said.
“I know that I’ve done the maximum that I possibly could.
“Unfortunately, I ended up with zero Slams, but it’s all right; I’m at peace with myself.”
Berdych never took home a Slam title, but how does his career compare to the current members of the ATP top ten who are yet to win a Major?
NameGrand Slam finalsCareer-high rankingMasters 1000 titlesCasper Ruud320Alexander Zverev227Tomas Berdych141Taylor Fritz141Grigor Dimitrov031Andrey Rublev052Alex de Minaur060Tomas Berdych compared to current ATP top-ten stars without a Major
Berdych’s career currently looks quite similar to that of American star Taylor Fritz’s, having both reached a singular Slam final, peaked at number four in the world, and won a Masters 1000 title.
Fritz lost in the US Open final this year and was runner-up in Turin as he enjoyed the best year of his career to date.
The former Czech number one shocked the tennis world in 2010 as he knocked out Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic to qualify for the Wimbledon final, where he came up against Rafael Nadal.
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He came up short in his only Major final as he lost to the Spaniard in straight sets, but had certainly made his mark at SW19.
We’ll never know what Berdych could’ve achieved had he been born into a different era in tennis, but with his immense talent, which fans saw first-hand in 2010, he may well have added a Slam title or two to his trophy cabinet.
Having retired from tennis in 2019, Berdych currently serves as the Czech Davis Cup captain and is preparing for a qualifier against South Korea which begins on January 31.
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