ATP Finals Archives

Jannik Sinner beats great rival Carlos Alcaraz to retain ATP Finals title

TURIN: Jannik Sinner retained the ATP Finals title on Sunday after beating Carlos Alcaraz 7-6 (7/4), 7-5 and ending a turbulent season with victory over his great rival.

Italian Sinner brought the house down in Turin by winning the championship match that tennis fans wanted to see, adding the prestigious year-ending tournament to the Australian Open and a landmark triumph at Wimbledon this season.

The 24-year-old also bounced back from a three-month ban, which chopped out a large chunk of his season despite the World Anti-Doping Agency accepting that the Italian was accidentally contaminated with the banned substance clostebol last year.

Sinner has now won 31 straight matches on indoor hard courts, a run which stretches back to the 2023 championship match at Turin’s Inalpi Arena, which he lost to Novak Djokovic.

Four more wins on indoor hard courts would draw him level with Djokovic’s tally set between 2012 and 2015, the second-highest in the Open era, but some way behind John McEnroe’s record of 47.

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He hasn’t dropped a set at the Finals since losing that final to the Serb two years ago, and he was imperious over the week in northern Italy.

While both Sinner and Alcaraz breezed into the final, the championship game was an attritional affair, with each player rock-solid on serve until an enthralling tie-break at the end of the first set.

Sinner took the lead thanks to a brilliant lob which set up a set point, and he made no mistake with a missile of a serve which Alcaraz could only limply send wide.

But Sinner immediately handed Alcaraz the advantage in the second set with two double-faults, which helped hand his opponent a break of serve at the start of the frame.

Sinner hadn’t dropped a service game in the whole tournament up to that point, but he broke back in game six to put the crowd on their feet.

And Sinner collapsed to the ground in joy when Alcaraz sent a backhand wide on the first championship point, before heading into the stands to share his joy with his family amid the roars of the crowd.

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Jannik Sinner beats Alex de Minaur to reach ATP Finals title match

Jannik Sinner continued his mastery over Alex de Minaur on Saturday with a straight-sets win to reach the ATP Finals championship match for the third year in a row.

Sinner broke late in the first set and then pulled away from De Minaur to complete a 7-5, 6-2 win, his 13th in as many meetings with the Australian.

The Italian world number two has yet to drop a service game en route to the final but will likely have a tougher test in the final against top seed Carlos Alcaraz, who is the favourite to beat Felix Auger-Aliassime in Saturday’s other semi-final.

“Honestly, every matchup (with Alcaraz) is different. We saw it in Rome and Paris, even if it’s the same surface (clay), it can change,” said Sinner, who lost both of those finals before beating his Spanish rival to win Wimbledon.

“Another final, has been an amazing year for me. I’m looking forward for tomorrow… Also, to see for me where my level really is, but at the same time it’s great before the off-season to have this matchup.

“He still has a match to go against Felix… He loves to play indoors, as we know. Let’s see who is going to win. Anyway, I’m happy to be in the final. Then we see.”

Sinner has won his last 18 sets played in Turin, where he beat Taylor Fritz in last year’s final. The four-time Grand Slam champion is on a 30-match winning streak on indoor hard courts.

The 24-year-old Sinner hasn’t dropped a set at the ATP Finals since losing the 2023 final to Novak Djokovic, while De Minaur ends his year with a more upbeat mood than the one he had after losing to Lorenzo Musetti in the group stage.

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De Minaur admitted that he had been in a “dark place” after that loss, which almost cost him a place in the last four, before he beat Taylor Fritz to set up Saturday’s clash with Sinner.

“I had a little shift in perspective. Of course, like, sitting here right now, I feel like I should have finished my Turin campaign having won two matches instead of one,” De Minaur told reporters.

“But you can’t really change the past. You’ve just got to do your best to learn from it, get back up, and keep on heading forward, right? That’s ultimately the goal now. Obviously, I’m in a much better place.”

De Minaur fought off two break points in the opening game of the semi-final but then failed to convert any of the three he carved out in Sinner’s first service game.

The Australian resisted again when Sinner threatened to break in the seventh and ninth games, but the second seed eventually struck the key blow at 5-5 and snatched the first set.

Sinner surged 4-0 ahead in the second set before wrapping up his ninth straight win at the tournament, becoming the youngest player since Lleyton Hewitt in 2004 to reach three finals at the season-ending event.

If Sinner faces Alcaraz in the final, it will be their sixth meeting of the season. Alcaraz has won four of the five previous matches, triumphing in the French Open and US Open finals.

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Jannik Sinner cruises past Alexander Zverev to reach last four of ATP Finals

Jannik Sinner reached the last four of the ATP Finals on Wednesday after beating Alexander Zverev 6-4, 6-3 to qualify from the Bjorn Borg group with a match to spare.

World number one Sinner is bidding to retain his title at the prestigious end-of-season tournament, and he cruised into the semi-finals in front of a delighted crowd in Turin.

The 24-year-old was not at his best and struggled with a hand problem at the start of the match, but still had more than enough to see off Zverev for the fifth straight time.

Zverev hasn’t beaten Sinner since the 2023 US Open, being destroyed by the Italian in the semi-finals of the recent Paris Masters, and again, the German couldn’t handle the four-time Grand Slam champion.

Sinner was brutal on his serve, rattling in 12 aces, and once he took the first set with his third break point of game 10, he never looked back.

“If we watch the match today, there were one or two points, that’s why I won the first set,” Sinner told reporters.

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“A couple of points, that’s why I won the second set. If those points go the other way, maybe it’s the same score in the opposite way. You never know.”

Zverev needed to win in straight sets to book his place in the semis, but will now have to beat Felix Auger-Aliassime, a 4-6, 7-6 (9/7), 7-5 winner over Ben Shelton, in his final group match on Friday in order to progress.

But he cut an irritated figure on court, frustrated by his inability to capitalise on any of his seven break points, a series of unforced forehand errors and at one point by a flashing advertising sign.

“Listen, I hope to see him again, it’s as simple as that, this week,” Zverev said.

“He’s not unplayable. I had many opportunities. He had one, and he used the chance. This is why he’s number one in the world, you know? He uses the chances that he gets.”

Sinner, meanwhile, will take on Shelton, aiming to top the group and set up a clash with whoever finishes second in the Jimmy Connors Group, which is currently led by his great rival Carlos Alcaraz.

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Jannik Sinner dominates Felix Auger-Aliassime in ATP Finals opener

Italy’s Jannik Sinner got his title defence off to a solid start with a dominant straight-sets win over ailing Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime at the ATP Finals on Monday in Turin.

Nine days after their duel in the final of the Paris Masters, Sinner was again the strongest, winning 7-5, 6-1.

But fellow Italian Lorenzo Musetti was earlier outclassed 6-3, 6-4 by American Taylor Fritz.

After a tight first set, Sinner swept aside Auger-Aliassime, who had been hampered by a left calf injury, by breaking serve to rush to a 3-0 lead.

He broke him a second time to close out the match with an ace after one hour 41 minutes.

“Obviously, winning the first match is very important in this competition and this format,” said 24-year-old Sinner.

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“It was a very tough match until 6-5. I had some chances to break. He served very well, except that I missed a return, but it can happen. He played some very aggressive tennis, so I’m happy to have overcome a very tough test today.

“I hope it‘s nothing too serious,” Sinner added of his rival. “I wish him obviously a very speedy recovery, and hopefully he is back to 100 per cent physically.”

Jannik Sinner notched his 27th consecutive victory on his preferred indoor hard court surface and took the lead in the Bjorn Borg Group, which will also see the world number two face Germany’s Alexander Zverev and American Ben Shelton.

The native of South Tyrol won the 2024 edition of the tournament, which brings together the eight best players of the year, by stringing together five wins without dropping a single set.

The 2025 edition could allow him to finish the season as world number one, currently held by his great Spanish rival Carlos Alcaraz, who has beaten him four times this year.

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Jannik Sinner defends ATP Finals title with Carlos Alcaraz in the hunt

Jannik Sinner will begin his bid to retain his ATP Finals title on Sunday and cap a turbulent year, which could end with another showdown with his great rival, Carlos Alcaraz.

World number one Sinner has won two Grand Slams, including a landmark victory in the Wimbledon final against Alcaraz, since cruising to victory in Turin this time last year.

Sinner and Alcaraz are almost certain to qualify from their respective Bjorn Borg and Jimmy Connors groups, and another epic clash between the world’s two best players in either the last four or final of the eight-man tournament is a tantalising prospect.

“If I manage to do it, great; if not, I’ve still had an incredible season, one with not a lot of tournaments but with a lot of matches played and plenty won,” Sinner told reporters on Friday.

“The first match is really important because usually you don’t play against one of the best eight players in the world, and that’s what makes it different for everyone.”

Sinner’s 2025 has also been dogged by controversy, with a three-month ban chopping out a large chunk of his season despite the World Anti-Doping Agency accepting that the Italian was accidentally contaminated with banned clostebol last year.

His decision to not take part in Italy’s Davis Cup title defence, in Bologna, has brought down hefty criticism from a portion of the country’s media who have never truly warmed to their biggest sports star.

Sinner’s origins in the German-speaking areas of the South Tyrol and residence in Monaco have frequently been used to cast doubt on whether he is Italian at all.

The 24-year-old insisted that he was “proud to be Italian” in an expansive interview given this week to Sky in Italy, Sinner’s number one media backer since he turned pro.

Regardless, he is beloved by the Italian public and will be cheered on by an army of fans in Turin, where last year he cruised to victory unbeaten while Alcaraz crashed out in the group stage.

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Sinner goes into the Finals first in the world rankings, but he could lose the top spot even if he wins the tournament. Alcaraz can grab the year-end summit by improving on his performance in last year’s event.

Alcaraz trained with Sinner on Friday ahead of his attempt for a first Finals crown.

The Spaniard is also looking to add to the two Grand Slams won this year, with the Roland Garros final won against Sinner one of the best matches ever played.

There is little tension between the two players, despite even that they are by some distance the best two players on the planet.

“Probably the people might be surprised about it because when they think about our rivalry, when they think about fighting for great things, fighting for the number one spot, (they think) we have to hate each other, and I think that’s not true,” Alcaraz said on Friday.

“Once we step on the court, we have our goals, we want to do our best just to win the match. But afterwards, when we shake hands off the court, we are the same person. And I think that’s a really healthy rivalry that we have.”

The Finals take place as a dispute simmers between tennis’ top men and women players and the Grand Slams over revenue sharing, player welfare and consultation.

The leading players of the ATP and WTA tours joined forces this year and asked the Slams for a higher percentage of tournament revenue and contributions towards tour-funded welfare programmes such as pensions.

On Thursday, women’s number one Aryna Sabalenka expressed frustration at the Grand Slam organisers’ apparent unwillingness to speak to the players after talks ground to a halt following the US Open in September.

On Friday, the men were reticent to speak about the subject, even though Sinner and seventh seed Alex de Minaur were player reps at a first meeting with the Slams in Paris at Roland Garros in May.

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Novak Djokovic top of the world after sinking Rune at ATP Finals

Novak Djokovic will finish the year as world number one for a record-extending eighth time after beating Holger Rune 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (1/7), 6-3 in his opening match at the ATP Finals on Sunday.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion needed just one win or a defeat for young rival Carlos Alcaraz in order to secure top spot in the ATP rankings for 2023 and prevailed in a three-hour Green Group clash with spirited debutant Rune.

Djokovic, on a run of 19 straight wins, has had an age-defying year, winning three Slams to become the all-time record winner of major titles.

The 36-year-old came into the Finals in Turin off the back of his seventh triumph at the Paris Masters, his 40th victory at a Masters 100 event.

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Those are two more records to add to a long and growing list for Djokovic, who is hunting a seventh Finals title which would take him one ahead of retired great Roger Federer.

“It means a lot. You could see that there were a lot of emotions on the court,” said Djokovic.

“I could feel it, I was very eager to win the match and get that monkey off my back… Obviously a big objective, a big goal has been achieved, everything else now is a bonus.”

Novak Djokovic looked on course for victory when he took a brutal opening set in decisive fashion, prevailing in the tie-break with a stunning cross-court return winner.

And the match looked to have turned decisively in the third game of the second set, when after Rune won the first two Djokovic broke back in a brilliant 11-point game eventually won at the third attempt.

Rune kept plugging away, however, and after the pair slugged each other with bigger and bigger hits Djokovic slipped in the tie-break, missing a simple volley to draw level on the second point and then collapsing to concede the set.

But after briefly losing it for allowing Rune to break back in game three of the third set, kicking his rackets in a rage, Djokovic composed himself and saw out a historic win.

“I found a way to win today against an opponent who played brilliantly… he had a lot of courage today,” added Novak Djokovic in Italian.

“If I want to keep up with these youngsters I’m going to have to work even harder!”

Home hope Jannik Sinner got off to a near-perfect start by beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4, delighting the crowd in Italy’s northwest.

Sinner has had the best season of his career to date, winning four tournaments and is set to become the first Italian ever to finish a season in the ATP top five.

The 22-year-old comfortably dealt with 2019 champion Tsitsipas in front of an enthusiastic crowd, not dropping a service game nor facing a break point in the whole match.

“The atmosphere was really, really nice. It’s huge pleasure for me to play here in Turin, in Italy,” Sinner told reporters.

“Obviously a little bit more pressure, but I managed it really well today, so I’m happy.”

Afterwards, Greek Tsitsipas denied he had any physical problems even though he looked way below his best, telling reporters “I’m healthy. I’m ready to compete.”

The 25-year-old had to play down reports of an elbow injury which curtailed practice ahead of his tournament opener.

“I’m absolutely fine and I’m ready to play this tournament. Turin is one of the most important events of the year for me,” he said.

On Monday, Alcaraz makes his ATP Finals debut in the Red Group against Alexander Zverev, the second seed Novak Djokovic’s closest challenger.

However the Wimbledon champion is in uncertain form after being dumped out of the Paris Masters by Russian qualifier Roman Safiullin following return from an injury lay-off.

The Spaniard hadn’t played since the Shanghai Masters in early October due to lower back and left foot problems.

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Nadal’s Finals hopes on a knife edge after Auger-Aliassime defeat

TURIN: Rafael Nadal’s hopes of a first-ever ATP Finals title and becoming year-end world number one hanging by a thread after he lost 6-3, 6-4 to Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime in Turin on Tuesday.

The 36-year-old Spaniard has lost both his matches in Turin — he fell to Taylor Fritz on Sunday — and will need to win his last Green Group match against Casper Ruud to keep alive his chances.

Even then it might be out of his hands.

Ruud — who beat Auger-Aliassime in their opening clash — faces Taylor Fritz later on Tuesday.

Nadal played like someone in just their third singles match since the US Open whereas Auger-Aliassime is in the form of his life having won three titles in October.

“It is great to win against him, and stay alive in the tournament!” said Auger-Aliassime.

“I have played some great tennis in the past month and to then beat a player of his stature is very special.”

Nadal spurned all four of his break points in the first set, though his 22-year-old Canadian opponent produced two superb forehands to stave off a break at 3-3.

Auger-Aliassime by contrast made no mistake breaking the Spaniard with the only one he was offered.

The Canadian was equally clinical when he was presented with two set points converting the first of them.

Nadal fared little better in the second set, as the lack of competitive matches showed – he had taken a break to spend time with his son, who was born in October.

Auger-Aliassime took the match by the scruff of the neck as he broke Nadal at 1-1, the Spaniard sending a loose volley long.

Auger-Aliassime was hitting the ball with sublime accuracy and could afford a rueful smile when one did not go as smoothly, flying upwards into the roof of the indoor arena.

Nadal had few chances to put Auger-Aliassime under pressure with the Canadian playing so well but he had a break point — the first of the second set for him — on his rival’s serve at 2-3.

However, once again he was unable to seize it and Auger-Aliassime went on to hold his serve and was never troubled from that point on, eventually closing out the match on the first of two match points.

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