Many clay court specialists competed in the South American ‘Golden Swing’ events, most recently playing in the Rio Open.

Those who typically perform better on hard courts, took part in the Qatar Open, in Doha, an event upgraded to the ATP 500 level for the first time in 2025.

Andrey Rublev beat Jack Draper in the final of the Qatar Open, 7-5, 5-7, 6-1, winning his first-ever repeat title.

Some players chose not to compete on the ATP Tour recently, instead participating in a different tournament, under different rules.

Jakub Mensik’s coach, Tomas Josefus thinks UTS event formats will be the norm in 2035

In an Instagram post on the Ultimate Tennis Showdown account, Jakub Mensik’s coach, Tomas Josefus can be seen sharing his thoughts on tennis’ newest format.

“Man, that is the future of tennis,” he said.

“In 2035, 80% of tournaments will be like this.

“The reason why I think this is the future of tennis is because, all sports, it’s especially about the crowd and the fans, and for them, I think it’s super, super fun.

“So hopefully they are enjoying this event and this is the reason why I’m thinking this is the future of tennis.”

Mensik was participating in the UTS event in Guadalajara, Mexico, alongside several other top ATP stars.

UTS tournaments are played under different rules to those seen on the ATP Tour, making for a unique viewing experience.

• Matches are divided into four eight-minute quarters
• Players have one serve per point – lets are played
• No more than 15 seconds between points
• If a player is three quarters to love up they win
• If players are level at two quarters a piece, they go to sudden death – two points in a row wins match
• Coaching is allowed at all times
• Players can use a ‘Bonus card’, once per quarter, where the next point counts for three
• Quarter point to end each quarter – leading player must win one final point once time expires

How did Jakub Mensik perform on his UTS debut in Guadalajara?

Mensik made his UTS debut in Mexico, looking to get out of a tough group that included his countryman Tomas Machac.

He lost his opener against Italian youngster Flavio Cobolli, 3-0, [14-13], [15-12], [20-12], before suffering a similarly convincing defeat at the hands of David Goffin, 3-0, [15-10], [19-11], [15-14].

Playing Machac in his final round-robin match, Mensik won his first ‘quarter’, eventually losing 3-1, [17-10], [18-12], [13-16], [20-9].

With the loss, Mensik exited the competition, with the worst record in ‘Group B’.

Machac went on to secure victory in Guadalajara, beating David Goffin in the final, 3-0.

Machac and Mensik will next face off at the Mexican Open in Acapulco, on Tuesday, February 25.