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ATP Next Gen Finals: 2018 Player Preview

By Toby Oliver

MILAN, ITALY - NOVEMBER 11: Hyeon Chung of South Korea celebrates with the trophy after victory against Andrey Rublev of Russia in the mens final on day 5 of the Next Gen ATP Finals on November 11, 2017 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Emilio Andreoli/Getty Images)
MILAN, ITALY - NOVEMBER 11: Hyeon Chung of South Korea celebrates with the trophy after victory against Andrey Rublev of Russia in the mens final on day 5 of the Next Gen ATP Finals on November 11, 2017 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Emilio Andreoli/Getty Images) /
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AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND – JANUARY 09: Liam Caruana of Italy plays a forehand during his first round match against Steve Johnson of the USA during day two of the ASB Men’s Classic at ASB Tennis Centre on January 9, 2018 in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Phil Walter/Getty Images) /

Next Gen Player No. 8 – Liam Caruana

20-year-old Italian wildcard Liam Caruana made it this year’s tournament by winning a playoff. He beat Raul Brancaccio in four sets to make it to Milan. The world number 622 has competed for much of the year on the futures circuit with some weeks playing challengers. However, he will be looking to entertain his home crowd just as Gianluigi Quinzi did last year.

Although Caruana was born in Italy, he represented USA between 2012 and 2016 as he trained there as a junior. He has played one match on the ATP World Tour this year, losing a close match with America’s Steve Johnson 7-5 7-6. Despite his inexperience, Caruana will be determined to not just make up the numbers in Milan.

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