2018 ATP Preview: No. 4, Alexander Zverev

As a preview of 2018, Baseline is taking a look at all the Top 10 finishers, beginning with the ATP.

See No. 5 here.

4

This season was a huge year for 20-year-old Alexander Zverev. He won a stunning five ATP titles, including two ATP Masters 1000s, and rose 20 spots in the rankings.

Hot Shot of the Year

Zverev won his second Masters title of 2017 in Montreal, but if this 49-stroke match point had gone the other way, he would have been eliminated in his first match of the tournament. After more than a minute of barrage, he finally finished the rally with a forehand winner.

Moment of the Year

Zverev went on to win the tournament, handing Roger Federer a rare 2017 defeat in the final--6-3, 6-4.

Outlook for 2018

The real test for the wunderkind next year will be how he performs at the Grand Slams. His success so far has relied heavily on strong showings at tour events. At the Slams, he lost in the third, first, fourth and second rounds, respectively. Getting deep into Second Weeks will let the world know that he's officially arrived.

Friday, December 29: Novak Djokovic begins his comeback at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi against either Roberto Bautista Agut or Andrey Rublev.

Not before 10:00 a.m. ET LIVE on Tennis Channel Plus. GET PLUS NOW at tnns.ch/TCPlus

Saturday, December 30: Roger Federer looks to continue his remarkable resurgence at the Hopman Cup in Perth in singles and mixed doubles competition.

4:30 a.m ET LIVE on Tennis Channel Plus. GET PLUS NOW at tnns.ch/TCPlus

Saturday, December 30: Serena Williams returns at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, in her first match since the birth of her first child, against the 2017 French Open champion, Jelena Ostapenko.

8:00 a.m ET LIVE on Tennis Channel. Additional airings at 2:00 p.m., 8:00 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. ET.