Jakub Mensik has revealed his hilarious reason for choosing to compete in Doha under new rules for young players. The 18-year-old has enjoyed a statement week, knocking out Andy Murray and world No. 5 Andrey Rublev en route to the semi-final. And he admitted that none of it would have happened without the promise of a tempting incentive.
Mensik has made the most of his entry into the Qatar Open, enjoying the best week of his young career. The Czech teenager reached his first ATP Tour semi-final in impressive fashion and will now crack the top 100 for the first time.
Usually, the world No. 116 wouldn’t have been able to enter the tournament. But under the new ATP Next Gen Accelerator Programme, players aged 20 and under ranked inside the world’s top 250 can pick one ATP 250 event to receive a wildcard into. And Mensik went with Doha.
His reason for picking the Qatar Open? “Because I receive free iPhone,” the 18-year-old laughed when asked why he opted for a wildcard during his on-court interview. As well as the incentive of a gift, Mensik also explained that Doha was his first opportunity to use the accelerator scheme.
He added: “No, no.I have to say that now that I didn’t have this opportunity sooner so for me this was the first option to play this tournament. You know, last week it was also a good tournament, 125 in Bahrain. So for me it was a good opportunity to play this Arabian swing.
