ATP Cincinnati's Blessing for Atmane Terence

At least three professional tennis tournaments in 2025 were marked by surprises from young players with the status of "nobody." Not only is it a source of pride to defeat top-ranked players, but this achievement is also highly significant for the continuation of their careers.

At the French Open Grand Slam, May 25-June 8, 2025, one of the women's singles semifinalists was the home tennis player who appeared because she received a wildcard, Lois Boison. Before being defeated by Cori Gauff, who eventually won, Boison eliminated 24th seed, Elise Mertens, in the first round, Jessica Pegula (3), in the fourth round, and Mirra Andreeva (6) in the quarterfinals. After the French Open, the 22-year-old tennis player's world ranking rose from 361st to 65th.

In the first week of August, 18-year-old Canadian singles player Victoria Mboko made the host public proud. She won the WTA 1000 Canada tournament held from July 27 to August 7, 2025, also, as a wildcard player.

In her journey to secure her first title from the WTA tournament, Mboko defeated Grand Slam champions, namely Gauff, Elena Rybakina, and Naomi Osaka in the fourth round, semifinals, and final. Thanks to this title, Mboko, who was ranked 284th at the beginning of 2025, soared to the 24th position.

At the ATP Masters 1000 Cincinnati tournament, held from August 7 to 18, 2025, a surprise was created by the French male tennis player, Terence Atmane. His journey ended in the semifinals after being defeated by the world number one, Jannik Sinner, with a score of 6-7 (4), 2-6 at the Lindner Family Tennis Center, Ohio, United States, on Saturday (16/8/2025) afternoon local time or early Sunday morning Indonesian time.

Atmane could not prevent the dream final between Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, who defeated Alexander Zverev, 6-4, 6-3 in another semifinal. The player, who had been competing since the qualifying rounds, failed to add another surprise after eliminating the fourth seed, Taylor Fritz, and Holger Rune (7) in the fourth round and quarterfinals.

However, the ATP Cincinnati marks the highest achievement for the 23-year-old tennis player since competing in professional tournaments in 2023. His first match in the professional arena was when he was defeated by Yoshihito Nishioka in the first round of the ATP 250 Zhuhai, China, on September 20, 2023.

At a higher level, namely the ATP Masters 1000, Atmane reached the third round in Rome in 2024. As for the Grand Slam tournaments, he was only able to compete in the main draw at the Australian Open and the French Open in 2024, as well as the French Open in 2025. All of his journeys on the Grand Slam stage ended in defeat in the first round.

Therefore, the performance and results in Cincinnati have become the most significant moment for Atmane, at least up to this point. "It feels crazy and hard to believe that I could reach the semifinals here. The match against Sinner is a great memory that I will never forget," said Atmane, who gave his collection of Pokémon cards to Sinner as a birthday gift, just before they were called onto the court.

Sinner became the third top ten-ranked tennis player to face Atmane after Fritz and Rune. Although he lost, Atmane at least gained many lessons that he can apply to future challenges.

I have learned to become stronger in mental factors to endure difficult situations. I have also learned to manage my emotions to be more stable.

Atmane was able to maintain all of his serves and did not face a single break point from his opponent in the first set. However, Sinner demonstrated what a player must do when competing, which is to perform consistently. "Sinner played better than I did in the second set. It's as simple as that," said Atmane on the official ATP website.

From his journey in Cincinnati, Atmane learned to endure in high-level matches for over a week. His muscles were tense while facing Sinner, marking the eighth match since the qualifiers. He is grateful to have managed this condition with mental strength, and it will be a valuable experience as he competes from the qualifying rounds of the US Open Grand Slam, August 24 – September 7, 2025.

"I have learned to be stronger in terms of mental factors in order to endure difficult situations. I have also learned to manage my emotions to be more stable," said the tennis player who will rank in the top 70 in the world, rising from the 136th position.

In addition to the experience of facing top tennis players, reaching the final stages of major tournaments, especially winning them, provides additional benefits for players like Atmane, Mboko, and Boison. They gain significant points that can elevate their positions in the rankings. With a higher ranking, Atmane and his peers have a greater opportunity to participate in more high-level tournaments.

"Entering the top 100 in the world rankings means I will not compete frequently since the qualifying rounds. The prize money I receive can also be invested in a coach and saved, as when playing in ATP Challengers, I tend to lose more money (expenses exceed the prize money)," said Atmane.

By reaching the semifinals of the Cincinnati Masters, Atmane received a prize of approximately IDR 5.3 billion. This amount is (slightly) larger than the prize he received from 25 tournaments this year prior to his appearance in Cincinnati, which was IDR 5 billion.

An athlete who has been playing tennis since the age of seven due to frequently playing tennis through video games also hopes that there will be a company that can become a sponsor. In addition to Technifibre, which sponsors him for rackets, Atmane does not have any other sponsors. He appeared in Cincinnati wearing a different brand shirt that he purchased himself. Without an agent, he manages all his needs independently, including buying all his necessities.

He was once sponsored by Asics, but the Japanese sportswear company terminated the contract in 2024. This occurred because Atmane brought Nike shoes onto the field, although they were not worn during the match, in the Shanghai Masters tournament.

"After Cincinnati, I have to be smarter in managing everything. I also have to work harder and prove that I have the ability to compete on the ATP Tour with greater challenges," said the tennis player who idolizes former Chilean player, Fernando Gonzalez. (AFP)