How Texas A&M stands at the forefront of Shanghai Masters' shockingly unexpected finals clash between cousins Arthur Rinderknech & Valentin Vacherot

The Shanghai Masters semifinals on Friday, October 11, saw an unexpected turn of events as World No. 204 Valentin Vacherot and World No.54 Arthur Rinderknech advanced to the tournament finals. The finals are scheduled for Sunday, which promises to be an exciting clash between two cousins, Vacherot and Rinderknech.

An even stranger incident that took place during the tournament was the fall of two players during the semifinals: a 24-time Grand Slam champion, Novak Djokovic, who Vacherot defeated, and a former US Open champion, Daniil Medvedev, who Rinderknech outdid. Amidst these unexpected and unpredictable semifinals, however, a singular common element that stood out is the contribution of Texas A&M University in both Vacherot and Rinderknech's careers.

Both Vacherot and Rinderknech spent their collegiate careers at Texas A&M, where they concluded their stints after the 2020-21 and 2017-18 seasons, respectively. They have also publicly spoken about the immense benefits they reaped from this stint at the university before their professional careers. In an interview a few years ago, Rinderknech said (via ATP Tour):

"I felt like it was the best fit for me. It was just a great experience and I kept improving."

After his semifinal victory at the Shanghai Masters over Djokovic, Vacherot expressed his gratitude to his coaches at Texas A&M University, along with his parents and family members, showcasing the respect he has for the seat of his tennis foundation. As per reports, Vacherot was immensely helped by Texas A&M coach Steve Danton during his tenure at the university. He said (during his on-court interview via The Tennis Letter):

"How I got taught to live life where I grew up is to always keep your feet on earth. Thanks to my parents, my family.. already when I was growing up, my brother Benjamin who’s over there.. he was playing on the tour.. he was ranked for most of his career around 200 in the world. For me that was already unreal to be 200 in the world. Now to be here… thank you to all the coaches at Texas A&M. They taught me the same thing. Just to work hard."

Notably, Valentin Vacherot, a finalist of the Shanghai Masters 2025, has also defeated several other top professionals, such as Holger Rune and Alexander Bublik, in this campaign. On the other hand, Arthur Rinderknech has gotten the better of Alexander Zverev, Felix Auger-Aliassime, and Jiri Lehecka.

Novak Djokovic shared a warm message for Valentin Vacherot after his Shanghai Masters semifinal defeat

Valentin Vacherot and Novak Djokovic during the Shanghai Masters semifinals (Image via: Getty)

Novak Djokovic shared a heartfelt message for Valentin Vacherot after his Shanghai Masters semifinal defeat on Saturday. Notably, Djokovic struggled immensely during the match with his fitness and scorching temperatures, eventually culminating in a straight-set 3-6, 4-6 defeat against the World No.204.

Speaking in an interview after the match, Djokovic congratulated Vacherot, stating that the latter was better than him on the court. The Serb further expressed his good luck to the world No. 204 and said (via ATP Tour):

"I want to congratulate Valentin for reaching his first Masters [1000] final. Going from qualifications, it's an amazing story. It’s all about him. I wish him all the best in the final, and the better player won today."

Further speaking in the interview, Novak Djokovic further remarked that Vacherot has an immensely impressive attitude, and his campaign at the Shanghai Masters has been amazing too.