Learner Tien snagged the biggest payday of his career by beating Alexander Blockx of Belgium 4-3(4), 4-2, 4-1 at the ATP Next Gen Finals in Jeddah.

Tien came into the final ATP Tour event of the year as the frontrunner. Even though he's already broken through to the top level, he still chose to play in the Next Gen Finals.

The American ended the regular season with a career-high ranking of No. 28, so he was almost too good for a tournament meant to show off rising stars.

Still, he handled the pressure of being the top player and had a convincing win against Blockx.

"I knew it would be a tough one," Tien said. I don’t think he missed a first serve for the first set and a half.

I think he's been playing great, so I’m just really happy to get through.

I’m thrilled. I knocked off a lot of things I wanted to do this year. I had a pretty long list of goals, and I got to most of them. I’m really happy.”

Tien was inspired again by his coach, Michael Chang. Though he mentioned that the former French Open champ doesn't usually give a ton of advice during matches.

“I don’t think he’s a coach that says a lot during matches, but when he feels like I need to hear something, he’s never shy about telling me, and I think that helps me a lot,” Tien said about his coach.

Tien could have won a huge $539,750 if he had won the ATP Next Gen Finals without a loss, but he missed out on the bonus because he lost his first match against Rafael Jodar of Spain in the group phase.

He bounced back from that to shine in the final and walked away with a big $502,250, making it the most profitable week of his career.

That money really boosts Tien’s overall career prize money to $1,743,311. He turned 20 earlier this month, so now he's got a financial cushion as he gets ready to make his mark in the 2026 season.

After confirming this year that he can hang with the best with five wins against top ten-ranked players, Tien is looking like someone to watch next season.

He's taken down Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, Ben Shelton, Andrey Rublev, and Lorenzo Musetti this year. Since he'll be one of the lower-ranked seeds at the Australian Open next month, the big names will want to avoid him in the draw.

Carlos Alcaraz is heading into a tricky part of his career.

Juan Carlos Ferrero isn't his coach anymore. Marion Bartoli hinted they might team up again soon!

After over seven years, Alcaraz won't have Juan Carlos Ferrero as his main coach. They split before 2026, ending a top-notch player-coach partnership in tennis.

Bartoli says the six-time major champ is entering a time of trying new things and getting used to changes, with people watching closely. She thinks the next six months will be about trial and error, which is new to him.

People will suggest different coaches, each one supposedly better than the last. Tennis fans will wonder who's the best fit to guide this super-talented player who could be the greatest of all time.

Lots of folks would jump at the chance to coach someone as good as Alcaraz. But it's not a given that they'll click, particularly at first.

Coaching a player this good is tough because there's little room for mistakes. Even a small problem can cause big trouble. But it gets even wilder!

Marion thinks Jannik Sinner could put Alcaraz under pressure if he wins the next two majors in Melbourne and Paris. The Italian wants to win his third Australian Open in a row in January.

Plus, he almost beat Alcaraz at this year's French Open final, missing three match points. So, it's possible he could win both titles and tie Carlos at six majors.

If that happens, things would change a lot, and the Spaniard might have to chase a rival who likes things steady. Then, he might go back to what he knows best, like a sure thing when things are tough.

Ferrero means familiarity, trust, and a system that worked, making Alcaraz the second-youngest player to win six major titles. If he came back as coach, it wouldn't mean failure, just being practical.

If the 22-year-old asks his old coach to come back, it would show that some partnerships are too good to ditch for good. Then, money wouldn't matter as much as it did recently.

Right now, Carlos is getting ready for the Australian Open with Samuel Lopez. As 2026 goes on, we'll see if the split was a smart move or just a break before they get back together.

For the next six months, it'll be about trying things out. People will talk about who might take the job.

Of course, coaching a genius like Carlos means you won't get turned down much. If things don't work out with his new coach, and Jannik wins the first two Majors of the year, which could happen, he'll have to call Juan Carlos back right away—that's pretty clear, Marion Bartoli said.