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Daniil Medvedev became the 69th different player to lift a Masters 1000 title when the young Russian went all the way at 2019 Cincinnati, a week after falling to Rafael Nadal in the final at the Coupe Rogers. In the process, Medvedev emulated Dominic Thiem (Indian Wells) and Fabio Fognini (Monte Carlo) in making his Masters 1000 breakthrough in the 2019 season.
In a career-best season which saw him reach a tour-high nine finals, make his maiden Grand Slam final at the 2019 US Open (lost to Nadal) and win a second Masters 1000 title in Shanghai, Medvedev was on a tear in the second part of the season. He reached the title match at six consecutive tournaments (Washington DC, Coupe Rogers, Cincinnati, US Open, St. Petersburg and Shanghai).
Ahead of the start of the 2020 Masters 1000 season at Indian Wells, let us have a look at three players who could make their breakthrough in the tournament series,.
#1 Stefanos Tsitsipas
.Stefanos Tsitsipas beat four consecutive top 10 opponents en route to his first Masters 1000 final at the 2018 Coupe Rogers, where he was stopped by Rafael Nadal.
A year later, the young Greek beat five-time champion Nadal at the 2019 Madrid Masters to reach his second final in the tournament category. However, Tsitsipas did not come good at the second time of asking, falling in straight sets to Novak Djokovic.
The reigning 2019 ATP Finals winner, who beat Karen Khachanov in his Masters 1000 debut at 2017 Shanghai, has also made two other semifinals (2019 Rome - Nadal, 2019 Shanghai - Medvedev) in the tournament category, losing to the eventual winner on both occasions.
One of the most talented players of the new generation, Tsitsipas has the game, composure, and big match temperament to challenge the best. He has beaten top players like Roger Federer (2018 Australian Open fourth round, 2019 ATP Finals semifinal), Novak Djokovic (2018 Coupe Rogers 3R, 2019 Shanghai quarterfinals), and Rafael Nadal (2019 Madrid semifinals) at the biggest of stages.
You may also like: Novak Djokovic - Deconstructing a Masters 1000 behemoth
#2 Denis Shapovalov
.Like Tsitsipas, Denis Shapovalov also marked his Masters 1000 debut with a win when he beat Nick Kyrgios in the first round at the 2016 Coupe Rogers.
A year later, the young Canadian announced his arrival on the big stage. Shapovalov beat then three-time tournament champion Rafael Nadal in a third-set tiebreak in the 2017 Coupe Rogers third round before losing to eventual winner Alexander Zverev in the semifinals.
In his next Masters 1000 semifinal, Shapovalov lost to the same player - at the 2018 Rome Masters - before going down to eventual winner Roger Federer in the 2019 Miami semifinals. Following a walkover over Nadal in the 2019 Paris-Bercy semifinals, Shapovalov reached his first Masters 1000 final, where he was stopped by Novak Djokovic.
Shapovalov, under the able guidance of his new coach Mikhail Youzhny, has improved his defensive game and has built on his attacking armory. The 20-year-old Canadian could be one of the players to make his Masters 1000 breakthrough in 2020.
#3 Roberto Bautista Agut
.Roberto Bautista Agut made his maiden Masters 1000 final at 2016 Shanghai, where he lost to Andy Murray) after beating Djokovic in the semifinals.
One of the steadier players on tour, Bautista Agut had a career-best season in 2019 where he made his maiden Grand Slam quarterfinal at the Australian Open (lost to Tsitsipas) and maiden Grand Slam semifinal at Wimbledon (lost to eventual winner Djokovic). That saw the gritty Spaniard make his debut in the top 10 of the ATP rankings.
The 31-year-old, who made three Masters 1000 quarterfinals last year - Miami (lost to John Isner), Coupe Rogers (lost to Gael Monfils) and Cincinnati (lost to Richard Gasquet), could be one of the players to win his maiden Masters 1000 title in 2020.
You may also like: Deconstructing Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer's 50 Masters 1000 finals
