‘Circled on my calendar’: Alex Michelsen makes Jeddah return | ATP Tour

Alex Michelsen

‘Circled on my calendar’: Improved Michelsen makes Jeddah return

American aims to draw on experience for Jeddah success

December 17, 2024

Alex Michelsen came up empty last year at the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, losing a pair of final-set tie-breaks in a dramatic group campaign. Armed with that experience and an improved all-around game, he returns as the second seed and one of the favourites to lift this season’s Jeddah crown.

“I’m very happy to be back. This has been circled on my calendar pretty much the whole year,” said the American. “To be back here as the second seed is really cool. I get my own locker. I’m super pumped.”

Michelsen entered the 20-and-under event last season shortly after breaking into the Top 100 of the PIF ATP Rankings. He’s now on the brink of the Top 40 after his first full season on the ATP Tour.

“This year I think is a little different,” he explained. “I can carry the experience I got this year into this week and all the experience I’ve gained from playing 33 weeks this year. I’m super happy to be back and hopefully I can do a little better than last year.”

One year after making the Newport final in just his second tour-level event, Michelsen backed that up by reaching two ATP Tour singles finals this season. He once again finished runner-up on the Newport grass before making another deep run on home soil on the hard courts of Winston-Salem.

“Very happy to make both those finals,” Michelsen said, looking back on what he called a “very positive year”.

“I finaled Cincy in doubles and then I went straight over to Winston-Salem and finaled in singles,” he continued. “I played a match every day for 12 or 13 days. I was pretty toasted going into the Open this year, but making those two [singles] finals was incredible. It was the highlight of my year for sure.”

The 20-year-old credits his dedication to fitness and a more professional diet for his strong 2024, as well as improvements on his forehand and serve. Thanks in large part his parents, Erik and Sondra, Michelsen has a strong foundation on which to build.

He often hit with both parents growing up and benefited from their varied playing styles. While his dad played an aggressive game, his mom was more of a grinder: “When I would go out on the weekends to play with both my parents, I’d just be grinding with my mom. Then my dad would step in,” he said with a laugh. “It was always a little more fun with my dad because we’d play all these fun little games, like cross-court first to five, chip backhands, stuff like that. My mom was like, ‘OK, we’re going to hit forehand cross-court for 30 minutes.’

“She built me a great base. I hit with her almost every day until I was 15. When COVID came around, that’s kind of when I stopped hitting with her. But I used to hit with her four or five times a week and without her there’s not a chance I would be here. I’m incredibly grateful to my parents.”

Now, Michelsen fine-tunes his game with coaches Robby Ginepri and Jay Leavitt. They have both helped him get used to life on the ATP Tour, when — even for the very best — most weeks end with a loss.

“At the beginning it was tough not winning,” Michelsen said of the adjustment. “Not winning a tournament, it bums you out a little bit. In juniors I was winning a lot in the local tournaments and then the ITFs. And then you get on Tour and everyone is so good and it’s just so tough to win a tournament. I feel like I’ve gotten a lot better [at dealing with that] just because you know everyone is losing except one guy. I’ve matured in that way for sure.”

With the unique format this week in Jeddah, Michelsen could take a loss and still win the title. Or he can match Jannik Sinner‘s run at the Nitto ATP Finals with a perfect 5-0 record en route to the trophy.

No doubt aiming for the latter, Michelsen will begin his Jeddah campaign Wednesday with an all-American matchup against seventh seed Nishesh Basavareddy.