From 12 to 19 November in Turin. The eight strongest tennis players on the planet are competing at the Pala Alpitour in the Piedmontese capital
The highly anticipated games will take place in Turin from 12 to 19 November ATP Finals. The eight strongest tennis players on the planet are competing at the Pala Alpitour in the Piedmontese capital. The reigning champion and big favorite is Mr. 24 Slam Novak Djokovic, chasing his seventh title at the Finals. For ‘Djoker’, winner on six occasions like Roger Federer, it would be yet another record. The 36-year-old Serbian has not lost a match since the Wimbledon final, when he lost 6-4 in the 5th set to the Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz. After the bitter defeat in London only triumphs: at the US Open and in the ‘1000’ in Cincinnati and Paris-Bercy.
L’Italy wants to dream with Jannik Sinner who presents himself as Djokovic’s main antagonist, given the great moment of form confirmed by the titles won in the last month at the ATP 500 in Beijing and Vienna. The 22-year-old from South Tyrol is the youngest Italian player in history to qualify for the ‘Masters’ and the fourth overall after Adriano Panatta, Corrado Barazzutti and Matteo Berrettini. Two years ago Sinner came in as a reserve due to the injury of the 2021 Wimbledon finalist, also winning a match against the Polish Hubert Hurzacz. This time one success won’t be enough for him: the goal is to reach at least the semi-final, as his status as number 4 in the world requires.
Two other ‘contenders’ in Turin will be the aforementioned Alcaraz, world number 2, who seems to be declining in form but cannot be excluded from the prediction given his enormous class. There are 6 titles won this season by the twenty-year-old from Murcia: Buenos Aires, Indian Wells, Barcelona, Madrid, Queen’s and Wimbledon. Alcaraz is participating in the Finals for the first time, after last year he was unable to be in the match due to an abdominal muscle injury suffered in Paris-Bercy.
Also pay attention to the 27-year-old Russian Daniil Medvedev, number 3 in the ATP ranking and winner in 2020 at the Finals. The winner of the 2021 US Open will also want to avenge the two knockouts against Sinner in the finals in Beijing and Vienna. This year Medvedev took home 5 tournaments with the pearls of the ‘1000’ of Miami and Rome. The 26-year-old Russian arrives in Turin as world number 5 Andrey Rublev, semi-finalist last year and who comes from the best season of his career which saw him achieve the first ‘1000’ title in Monte Carlo, in addition to the success in the ‘250’ of Bastad, both on clay. Rublev will play the role of outsider, ready to take advantage of a misstep by the big names.
The winner of the ‘Masters’ 2019, the Greek, should not be underestimated Stefanos Tsitsipas, number 6 in the world, returning from a season of ups and downs. Best moments were the final at the Australian Open, lost to Djokovic, and the victory in the Mexican 250 in Los Cabos. After Djokovic, Alexander Zverev, number 7 ATP, is the only player to have won the Masters more than once among active players, having won it in 2018 and 2022. The 26-year-old German is returning from a season of recovery after the serious ankle injury last year. He won two on clay in Hamburg (ATP 500) and on the fast track in Chengdu (ATP 250).
Finally number 8 Holger Rune, taking part for the first time at the age of twenty, is making a clear recovery after difficult months due to some physical problems. Only one title for him on the clay of Munich but two prestigious ‘1000’ finals in Monte Carlo and Rome.
Source-www.adnkronos.com