(Tennis news) The third edition of the ATP Cup saw the young Canadians taking the title for the first time. The season opener gave the perfect start to the 2022 season as it saw many players giving all of their might to see their country winning. There were many senior and junior players who were in their zone on court as they proved to be an invaluable part of the team. Here are the top four players at the ATP Cup.

Roman Safiullin: Russia

When in Rome, do as the Romans do and that is what Safiullin exactly did. He formed a great duo with Daniil Medvedev in doubles and in singles he did what every player should for their country. Russia seemed to have lost its powerhouse as Rublev and Karatsev pulled which made way for Safiullin who unexpectedly became the hero for the team.

Safiullin became a fan favourite in the very first match against France when he defeated Arthur Rinderknech who was 120 places above him in the rankings. In the second match, the world number 167 secured his biggest win by beating James Duckworth and got his first top 50 win on tour. He lost the next two matches to Jannik Sinner and Denis Shapovalov but did his best to make them work hard for the win.

Safiullin and Medvedev were the lowest ranked doubles pair in every match they played but still won three matches and lost in the semifinals to Canada. Safiullin has been the latest Russia to make a mark in the sport and will hope to join the likes of Aslan Karatsev and Andrey Rublev.

Daniel Evans: Great Britain

Britain had everything at the event but luck as Canada’s victory over Germany put them out of the knockout stage. Evans played five matches in the ATP Cup and won every match dropping just one set in the final doubles match against USA. The world number 26 won all his singles matches beating Denis Shapovalov and John Isner in straight sets. He was the most valuable player for the team and partnered with Jamie Murray against Germany and USA. 

Roberto Bautista Agut: Spain

Roberto led the Spanish team like a gladiator in every match. The 33 year old has been having fantastic starts to the season for the past 5 seasons piling up more than 40 wins and less than 10 losses. He won four matches and it was painful to watch the world number 17 lose in the final even after picking up two top 10 victories on the way.

Felix Auger-Aliassime: Canada

The Canadian team was led by two youngsters, the rising stars of the sport. Felix and Shapovalov were one the youngest players on the event, they carried the responsibility with quite a bit of maturity. The world number 9 defeated Cameron Norrie in the second match and also paired with Shapovalov to win the tie. 

Felix played 5 singles matches and 3 doubles matches at the ATP Cup which showed the young Canadian had a lot of workload and pressure through the event. The doubles win against Russia put the team through the final and his win against Roberto gave the title to the team.

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