After a full season of play, the inaugural group of players have been determined to partake in the groundbreaking collaboration between the ATP and Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) which will accelerate the professional development pathway for players in the American Collegiate system.
The collaboration will see ATP Challenger Tour playing opportunities allocated to the highest-ranked ITA College players for the first time. This forms part of a long-term strategy to promote the rise of young talent in the professional game and builds on opportunities offered to the world’s top-ranked ITF Junior players through the Accelerator Programme, which came into play at the start of the 2023 season.
Players ranked in the Top 20 of the ITA final singles rankings who have finished their education will be granted up to eight Accelerator Spots at Challenger 50 and 75 tournaments, with opportunities split between Main Draw (Top 10) and Qualifying (11-20). Players who reach the Quarter-Final or better of the individual NCAA Division I Tennis Championship will also qualify for the Accelerator Programme if not already eligible via their ITA ranking.
Players who remain in education and qualify for the programme will receive six opportunities over six months (July–December), enabling them to benefit from the programme during their College off-season and parts of their individual fall season.
Listed below are the 21 players who qualified for the 2023 ATP Accelerator Programme through either ITA year-end rankings or by reaching the NCAA Division I Tennis Singles Championship Quarterfinals.
Qualified Players
| Player | School | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Eliot Spizzirri | Texas | ITA Rank/NCAA Quarterfinalist |
| Ethan Quinn | Georgia | ITA Rank/NCAA Quarterfinalist |
| Arthur Fery | Stanford | ITA Rank/NCAA Quarterfinalist |
| Ondrej Styler | Michigan | ITA Rank/NCAA Quarterfinalist |
| Chris Rodesch | Virginia | ITA Rank/NCAA Quarterfinalist |
| Johannus Monday | Tennessee | ITA Rank |
| Melios Efstathiou | Wake Forest | ITA Rank |
| Antoine Cornut-Chauvinc | Florida State | ITA Rank |
| Andres Martin | Georgia Tech | ITA Rank |
| Toby Samuel | South Carolina | ITA Rank |
| Liam Draxl | Kentucky | ITA Rank |
| Cannon Kingsley | Ohio State | ITA Rank |
| Murphy Cassone | Arizona State | ITA Rank/NCAA Quarterfinalist |
| Andrew Fenty | Michigan | ITA Rank/NCAA Quarterfinalist |
| Sebastian Dominko | Notre Dame | ITA Rank |
| Nishesh Basavareddy | Stanford | ITA Rank |
| Connor Thomson | South Carolina | ITA Rank |
| Garrett Johns | Duke | ITA Rank |
| Jake Fearnley | TCU | ITA Rank |
| Alafia Ayeni | Kentucky | ITA Rank |
| Alexander Bernard | Ohio State | NCAA Quarterfinalist |
About The ATP
As the global governing body of men’s professional tennis, the ATP’s mission is to serve tennis. We entertain a billion global fans, showcase the world’s greatest players at the most prestigious tournaments, and inspire the next generation of fans and players. From the United Cup in Australia, to Europe, the Americas and Asia, the stars of the game battle for titles and Pepperstone ATP Rankings points at ATP Masters 1000, 500 and 250 events, and Grand Slams. All roads lead towards the Nitto ATP Finals, the prestigious season finale held in Turin, Italy. Featuring only the world’s top 8 qualified singles players and doubles teams, the tournament also sees the official crowning of the year-end ATP World No. 1, presented by Pepperstone, the ultimate achievement in tennis. For more information, please visit www.ATPTour.com.
About the ITA – The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) is the governing body and coaches association of college tennis, both an advocate and an authority for the sport and its members. Comprised of 1,260 colleges and universities, 20,000 student-athletes, 1,700 varsity programs, 3,000 coaches, and 1,350 college tennis officials, the ITA empowers college tennis coaches at all levels to deliver vibrant tennis programs that are vital to their college communities and transformational to their student-athletes. Follow the Spring 2023 college tennis season on the ITA website and ITA social channels on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube.
