Brad Gilbert says there’s been an ‘amazing’ change in tennis which he simply never saw coming

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Now just a few weeks away from the 2025 tennis season getting underway, fans eagerly anticipate more thrilling action on the ATP Tour.

The 2024 ATP Tour season saw the emergence of two young stars, Alcaraz and Sinner, as they proved themselves to be the very best in the men’s game.

The Spaniard, already a two-time Slam winner, took home two more, as Alcaraz won the French Open, and Wimbledon titles this summer.

His Italian rival bookended his 2024 Major campaign with his first two titles at the level, as Sinner won the Australian Open, before taking home the US Open in New York.

There were disappointing years for several ATP stars, none bigger than Novak Djokovic, who failed to win a Grand Slam for the first time in seven years.

The world of tennis arguably changed more than ever in 2024, something that one former coach has now spoken about.

Brad Gilbert says the athleticism in modern tennis is ‘incredible’

Speaking on the Tennis Channel Inside In podcast, Coco Gauff’s former coach Brad Gilbert revealed the amazing change he has seen in tennis recently.

“The speed and athleticism, the size,” he said.

“You are seeing big guys like [Daniil] Medvedev and [Alexander] Zverev, these guys are 6ft 6 and they move like smaller guys.

“Another thing in movement which I thought I would never see, I remember back in the day when American players or other players couldn’t even slide on clay.

“Nowadays you see guys and girls sliding on a hard court, like it’s completely normal.”

Gilbert continues to be impressed by the athletic ability of the players on the ATP Tour.

“When I was a kid you never saw one person leap off the ground, now they are leaping off the ground when you serve, to forehand, to hitting open stance jump stops,” he said.

“All of that is pretty amazing.

“I almost say it’s become normal seeing it but it’s pretty incredible to see it and when I was playing back in the day, everything was on the ground.”

Will Alexander Zverev have a better career than Daniil Medvedev?

Zverev enjoyed a strong year on tour in 2024, as he reached his second career Grand Slam final and returned to number two in the world rankings.

He also picked up his first Masters titles in three years, as Zverev won the Italian Open and Paris Masters.

Alternatively, Medvedev failed to win a title for the first time since 2017, dropping to world number five.

As it stands, however, the Russian star still has the edge over his German rival.

Medvedev won the 2021 US Open against Djokovic, taking home his first Slam title at Flushing Meadows in dominant fashion as he won in straight sets.

Since then he has lost three Major finals, as he continues to come up short on the biggest occasions.

Zverev has struggled similarly to get over the line when it counts, losing two five-set Grand Slam finals, to Alcaraz and Dominic Thiem.

The German does look better positioned to push on next year, however, as he looked to have made some significant improvements during the last few months of 2024.

It remains to be seen if Zverev can win a maiden Grand Slam title next year, or if Medvedev can finally add to his tally but they’ll be hoping to get off on the right foot at the Australian Open which begins on January 12.