Rune, Rublev and De Minaur among players announced for UTS Grand Final 2024

The final 2024 edition of the Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) will take place from December 6 to 8 in London, and Holger Rune and Andrey Rublev are among the men confirmed for the event.

UTS is an exhibition held outside the ATP Tour. The first iteration, won by Matteo Berrettini, was played in 2020 due to the disruption to the tennis calendar caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Some fans and players are attracted by the difference between the UTS format and ATP and WTA tournaments. Each match is divided into timed quarters and there is a 15-second shot clock between points.

Players may also take one coaching time-out per set. The ITF’s decision to allow off-field coaching in 2025 means it’s gotten closer to the UTS, but it’s still not identical.

Three UTS editions have already been played in 2024. Andrei Rublev, who bloodied himself during a worrying meltdown at the Paris Mastersand Gael Monfils won the first two held in Oslo and New York this year.

Ben Shelton defeated Ugo Humbert to win the third UTS of 2024 in October. The American needed an exceptional comeback to beat the Frenchman, who also reached the final of the Paris Masters last week.

The third edition was somewhat overshadowed by the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Saudi Arabia, but there was still a lot of great tennis played. Luckily for fans in London, the line-up means the final UTS of the year could be even better.

Holger Rune is one of the players confirmed for the 12th UTS since its inception. His final appearance of the 2024 season was at the Paris Masters, where he lost to eventual champion Alexander Zverev in the semifinals.

Rune subsequently withdrew from the ongoing Moselle Openmeaning his next on-field appearance will be at UTS 12. The Dane finished second behind Jack Draper the last time the UTS was held in London in 2023.

Although the 21-year-old played well at the Paris Masters, his former coach, Boris Becker, agreed with Jim Courier’s sharp criticism of his immature playing. Rune, who is working with Lars Christensen for the third time, hopes to be able to respond to that criticism next season.

Casper Ruud, who will play two exhibition games against Rune in the off-season, has also committed to playing for UTS. The Norwegian is currently involved in an exciting race to qualify for the ATP Finals.

Rublev and Alex de Minaur, the two other men competing this week to qualify for the ATP Finals, have also agreed to appear at UTS in December. Rublev is competing in the Moselle Open in Metz this week, while Alex de Minaur opted to play in the Belgrade Open.

Monfils will also travel to London for the next edition of the UTS. The Frenchman remains one of the most entertaining players to watch in tennis and often thrives in the UTS format, as he showed by winning the New York edition.

Humbert, Denis Sahpovalov, Thanasi Kokkinakis and Alexander Bublik are the other confirmed players.