ATP 2024: The Disappointments of the Season

Carlos Navarro | 6 Dec 2024 | 13.38

Daniil Medvedev and Holger Rune, disappointments of the year? Source: Getty

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The word disappointment is perhaps a bit strong. As a small disclaimer for this article, it must be said that all the players on this list are extraordinary athletes, doing unimaginable things for 99% of mortals, and holding the position they have in the world rankings is an impressive achievement. However... did we expect more from them this season? Not only have they not made the level jump they seek as part of their learning, but have they also taken a small step back? It is probably a maxim that applies to the five selections of our "disappointments" of the 2024 season, players who, when reflecting on their campaigns, given their own and others' expectations, may not be too pleased with their performance. Daniil Medvedev, Holger Rune... who do you choose? Who is missing?

- HOLGER RUNE: Zero titles, zero wins against the top-5, out of the top-10. At a time when his generational peers seem to be moving towards a historic rivalry, Rune still finds himself, experiencing ups and downs in a chaotic season both on and off the court. He started the year with Boris Becker and Severin Luthi and ends it returning to his initial partnership with Lars Christensen: perhaps the turmoil he has experienced off the court explains his search for identity and playing patterns within it. However, I still have full confidence in his potential, his -huge- ceiling, and his projection as a Grand Slam champion, but to deny that 2024 has meant a setback in his evolution would be foolish.

- DANIIL MEDVEDEV: For the first time since reaching the elite, the Russian has finished the season absolutely exhausted. Drained. A Don Quixote fighting against windmills that, at times, are not just rivals. Complaints about balls, surfaces, game orders... the most chaotic Medvedev has ended up breathless. Some may cry foul for labeling a player who finishes the year in the top-5 as a "disappointment," but three factors explain it well: he has suffered early defeats in multiple Masters 1000 tournaments for the first time (Canada, Cincinnati, Paris), losing the regularity in these tournaments that he was accustomed to; he finishes the year without titles, which is almost inexplicable for a player of his caliber... and, most importantly, he has widened the gap in direct confrontations against Alcaraz and Sinner, making it seem much farther from winning a Grand Slam than before. He needs a break and a disconnect like breathing, and hopefully, this will lead us to the best Daniil sooner rather than later.

- STEFANOS TSITSIPAS: Since 2018, Tsitsipas had always shown up at the ATP Finals. Regardless of how good or bad his season was, there was the Greek, accumulating enough points on the clay court tour to stand among the top eight... until now. A year that, beyond the brilliant spark in Monte Carlo, where he won his only title, falls significantly short of what we expected and what his growth curve should indicate, with defeats increasingly common against players beyond the top-20 and marked by, similar to Rune, off-court fluctuations. Separating from his father might be the first step to rekindling his enjoyment of playing tennis (with all that entails), hopefully signaling a hopeful decision to bring back the best Stefanos in 2025.

- BEN SHELTON: After causing a stir in an unforgettable US Open, Shelton's second full year as a professional has been characterized by inconsistency. We gave him the benefit of the doubt in 2023, a season in which he experienced the tour's wear and tear for the first time, but in 2024, the trend has been quite similar, inevitably dampening his hype. His progression, at least, is slower than many imagined: he ends the year outside the top-20, with only an ATP 250 in his trophy cabinet and without displaying the flair that captivated us in Grand Slams. Nevertheless, his experience on the tour is still relatively small, and 2025 seems like a great opportunity to make that leap in quality that would propel him into the top-10.

- ANDREY RUBLEV: The title in the Mutua Madrid Open, marked by a tonsillitis bout that seemed to give him superpowers, "rescues" a season where his mental demons have surfaced more than ever. Not only that: Rublev lost the regularity and consistency that characterized him, suffering inexplicable defeats in Grand Slams without breaking the quarterfinal barrier. A year of ups and downs where perhaps the decline is less pronounced than other players on this list, as he ended up reaching the ATP Finals (due to Djokovic's absence, though), but it seems to have distanced him even further from the top tier, both in ceiling and sensations. I highly doubt that the Russian is content when analyzing his campaign, although he continues to be part of the absolute elite and will seek redemption in 2025, where he aims to move his name a bit further from the limelight.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, ATP 2024: Las decepciones de la temporada