London calling – Previewing this weekend’s UTS Grand Final

Ready? Set? Play! Here’s a look at the lineup – and a few key stats – for this weekend’s UTS Grand Final in London.

Andrey Rublev UTS London 2023 – Tennis Majors / UTS

December 4, 2024

The 2024 UTS Grand Final will take place this weekend at London’s Copper Box Arena, with eight players set to battle for bragging rights at the end of a thrilling 2024 UTS season. World No 8 Andrey Rublev, world No 9 Alex de Minaur, world No 13 Holger Rune, world No 14 Ugo Humbert, Frenchman Gael Monfils (world No 55), Aussie Thanasi Kokkinakis (77), Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik (33) and Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff (42) are set to battle for the ultimate crown.

Two days of round robin play will take place on Friday December 6th and Saturday December 7th at the Copper Box Arena, in addition to Friday’s star-studded All-Star game, followed by Sunday’s knockout rounds. The octet has been separated into two groups of four, with Rublev, Humbert, Monfils, and Kokkinakis drawn in Group, and De Minaur, Rune, Bublik, and Struff in Group B.

They will compete against each other in the round-robin format and the innovative All-Star Game, followed by the knockouts (semi-finals and final) on Sunday.

2 days to to at the Copper Box Arena 🔥 pic.twitter.com/3EMrE5oRsO
— UTS Tour (@uts_tour_) December 4, 2024

Here’s what you need to know before the action starts.

Rublo back with a vengeance

Last year Andrey Rublev – Rublo – was the heavy favourite to come away with the Grand Final crown, but he was knocked off his perch by the Viking Holger Rune in the semi-finals.

This year the Russian, the winningest player in UTS history at 12-4, is back to prove he is the man to beat. 27-year-old Rublev is undefeated when leading in UTS matches and he holds the longest match win streak in UTS history at seven victories.

He’ll be challenged in his group, however, as he has previously lost to both Humbert and Monfils, while he has never faced Thanassi – Kokki – Kokkinakis.

Frontrunning is the way

An interesting stat, compiled over the last two UTS seasons: players that win the first quarter – there are four 8-minute quarters in every match – have won 68 percent of their matches. If they win the first two quarters, their chances increase to 81 percent.

A fast start is imperative to win it all.

But all is not lost for the slow starter

Though comebacks from 0-2 down are rare, those who can come back from the brink to force sudden death are often successful. Players who have rallied from 2-0 down have won in sudden death 73 percent of the time in UTS matches since 2023. At UTS, it is wise to never give up hope.

Four in the Top 15

You want starpower? If you bought your tickets for this weekend’s UTS Grand Final you made the right call.

Four Top-15 players – No 8 Rublo, No 9 Demon, No 13 Rune (Viking) and No 14 Humbert (the Commander) are in the mix. Sprinkle in the electric stylings of former world No 6 Monfils and Bublik, trickle in a dash of Struff’s thunder and Kokkinakis fire and you have the perfect recipe for prime time tennis at its finest.

Making the most of time

UTS is proud to say that its roots are in the non-conformist camp. Designed by mastermind Patrick Mouratoglou to give tennis a pathway to a younger audience, the competition has delivered. One way to measure success is… speed.

UTS produces nearly double the amount of points per hour of normal tour tennis. Traditional best of three matches on tour feature 79 points per hour of play. At UTS we cut to the chase and deliver a whopping 135 points for hour. If you want action – nonstop action – tune in this weekend!

Serving up success

Did you know that UTS tennis features only one serve? Going without a second-serve is a game-changer to be sure, and nobody has handled it better than Rublo. Andrey Rublev has won 57 percent of his service points at UTS since the start of 2023, better than any other player.

When it comes to return, Kokki is the man on a mission. The Australian has won 57 percent of his return points at UTS. How does he do it? He grinds out longer points than any other player in this weekend’s elite eight. It takes him 6.8 seconds on average to win a point. That’s longer than any other Grand Final contestant