Brandon Nakashima beat Jiri Lehecka 4-3 (7-5) 4-3 (8-6) 4-2 to win the Next Gen Finals title at the Allianz Cloud in Milan. Nakashima has become the first US player to win the Next Gen Finals title.
Nakashima, who beat Lehecka for the second time this week, rallied from a break down in the first set before clinching the set in the tie-break 7-5.
Nakashima fended off two set points at 4-6 in the tie-break of the second set and reeled off four consecutive points to win the set.
Nakashima broke Lehecka in the final game to seal the third set 4-2. He hit 19 winners and committed just four unforced errors.
Nakashima dropped just two sets in the round-robin group, including a straight-set win over Lehecka. He beat Great Britain’s Jack Draper in the semifinal.
The US player had a record of 8-1 in tie-breaks in his five wins in this year’s edition of the Next Gen ATP Finals. Earlier this year Nakashima won his first ATP Tour title in San Diego and reached the fourth round at Wimbledon and two quarter finals in Atlanta and Los Cabos. He became the youngest US player to reach multiple finals since Andy Roddick in 2001 and 2002. He achieved the biggest wins of his career over world number 16 Denis Shapovalov in Wimbledon second round and world number 19 Grigor Dimitrov in the US Open second round.
Nakashima has followed in the footsteps of Hyeon Chung, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, who won the first four editions of the Next Gen ATP Finals. Last year Nakashima reached the semifinals at the Next Gen Finals, losing to his countryman Sebastian Korda in five sets.
His parents Wesley and Christina are both pharmacists. His mother grew up in Vietnam and moved to California at the age of five. He enrolled early at the University of Virginia as 17-year-old and was named 2019 ACC Freshman of the Year before turning pro. Nakashima is coached by Argentina’s Eduardo Infantino and Franco Davin, who worked with Gaston Gaudio, Juan Martin Del Potro and David Nalbandian.
“Being American and being able to play here in Milan is the best feeling in the world. I am going to take the title back to the United States and now take some time off. My team means everything to me. Together we have had such a great year, working well together. I am happy with where we are at right now and we are going to enjoy this one. It’s a final. Obviously there is going to be some pressure moments. Definitely some nerves coming out in the beginning but I an happy that I was able to turn it around quickly, find my game and close it out in the end”, said Nakashima.
