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Tag: ATP Finals

  • ATP World Tour Finals: Don’t suppose it was considered one of my greatest days, says Novak Djokovic after beating Thomas Fritz

    Novak Djokovic admitted that it wasn’t his greatest day within the sport on Saturday after going previous Thomas Fritz within the semi-final of the ATP World Tour Finals. Djokovic will now face Casper Ruud within the remaining.

    New Delhi,UPDATED: Nov 20, 2022 08:36 IST

    Djokovic was joyful to flee with the win on Saturday (Courtesy: Reuters)

    By India Today Web Desk: Novak Djokovic admitted that Saturday wasn’t considered one of his greatest days in tennis after edging previous Thomas Fritz within the ATP World Tour Finals semi-final.

    Djokovic was in for a battle with Fritz because the German pushed the 21-time Grand Slam champion all the way in which within the remaining 4 match. The Serbian was capable of survive a barrage of offense from Fritz to win the match 7-6(5) 7-6(6) in Turin.

    Djokovic will now face Casper Ruud within the remaining with an opportunity to win the most important prize in tennis historical past, netting $4,740,300 for lifting the event trophy undefeated.

    Speaking after the match on Saturday, the Serbian stated that he needed to battle to outlive within the contest towards Fritz and he did not really feel very reactive or snug throughout the bout.

    Djokovic expressed his aid in managing to beat the German and claimed that it wasn’t considered one of his greatest days within the sport.

    “I had to fight to survive,” the 35-year-old stated in remarks supplied by the ATP.

    “I didn’t feel very reactive today or very comfortable… I am very pleased to have overcome this one as I don’t think it was one of my best days with my tennis but I managed to hang in there.”

    Djokovic will now tackle Ruud, who secured a reasonably snug win towards Andrey Rublev within the different semi-final. The Norwegian gained the match 6-2, 6-4.

    Ruud instructed the ATP web site stated that he Rublev hit some nice returns however he wasn’t stressing an excessive amount of on the day and stated issues went his approach.

    “It’s tough sometimes because things are obviously going great, but sometimes they can go almost too well,” Ruud stated in remarks posted to the ATP web site.

    “Andrey hit some great returns, aggressive with the forehand… I wasn’t stressing too much. Everything sort of was going my way today.”

    Djokovic and Ruud will face one another within the remaining on Sunday.

    Published On:

    Nov 20, 2022

  • ATP Finals: Novak Djokovic beats Taylor Fritz to storm into the ultimate

    Novak Djokovic is only one step away from equalling Roger Federer’s ATP Final file after he stormed into the ultimate of the ATP Finals following a straight-sets win over Taylor Fritz on Saturday, November 19.

    UPDATED: Nov 19, 2022 22:09 IST

    Novak Djokovic celebrates after reaching ATP Finals last. (AP Photo)

    By India Today Web Desk: Novak Djokovic is one step away from a record-equalling sixth ATP Finals title after the Serbian defeated American Taylor Fritz on Saturday.

    Djokovic beat Fritz in straight units 7-6(5), 7-6(6) in slightly below two hours to succeed in the ultimate of the season-ending event. The Serb, who secured the win on his second match level, has now clinched all six matches towards the American.

    The 21-time singles champion Djokovic will both meet third-seeded Casper Ruud or Andrey Rublev as he bids to get his arms on the ATP Finals trophy for the primary time since 2015 in addition to match Roger Federer’s file.

    Having gained over Daniil Medvedev in his last group match, which ended lower than 24 hours in the past, Djokovic received no time to get better from a grueling three-hour contest. However, the Serb fought towards a spirited Fritz, who recovered from a break down within the first set and in addition broke within the first sport of the second set.

    “I had to fight to survive,” mentioned Djokovic after the match. “I didn’t feel very reactive today or very comfortable. I knew coming into today’s match from yesterday’s gruelling battle against [Daniil] Medvedev I knew it would take me some time to adjust and find the dynamic movement I need against Fritz, who is one of the best servers on the Tour.”

    However, Djokovic broke again and located his solution to pull by the tiebreaker. The Serb can also be now one match away from securing the most important pay within the historical past of tennis on Sunday, with USD 4,740,300 on supply for successful the ATP Finals title undefeated.

    “I had to be very patient, I didn’t start the second set very well,” mentioned Djokovic. “But I managed to break his serve at 5-4 when he was serving for the set, like when [Daniil] Medvedev was serving for the match yesterday. In those moments I find another gear and managed to hold my nerve and make him play another shot in the tie-break.

    “I’m very happy to have overcome this one as I don’t assume it was certainly one of my finest days with my tennis, however I managed to hold in there.”

    Published On:

    Nov 19, 2022

  • Carlos Alcaraz to finish 12 months as youngest No 1 after Rafael Nadal exits ATP Finals

    Carlos Alcaraz will grow to be the youngest year-end no. 1 participant in ATP historical past on the finish of December after Rafael Nadal was eradicated from the ATP finals.

    New Delhi,UPDATED: Nov 16, 2022 07:19 IST

    Carlos Alcaraz tops Rafael Nadal to turns into youngest year-end No. 1 (Reuters Photo)

    By India Today Web Desk: Rafael Nadal was knocked out of the ATP Finals on Tuesday after Casper Ruud defeated American Taylor Fritz of their round-robin match in Turin. With Nadal’s exit, teenager Carlos Alcaraz was assured of ending the 12 months as world primary.

    Alcaraz shall be confirmed because the youngest year-end primary for the reason that ATP rankings started in 1973. At 20 years and ten months, Lleyton Hewitt was the earlier youngest year-end No. 1 participant. Alcaraz broke that file and raised the bar for future rivals who wish to problem him.

    Nadal wanted to win the match to unseat compatriot Alcaraz on the prime of the rankings, however straight-set losses to Fritz on Sunday and Felix Auger-Aliassime earlier on Tuesday meant he wanted Ruud to lose in straight units to maintain his hopes alive.

    The Norwegian, alternatively, received the primary set 6-3 towards Fritz, due to his much-improved serve.

    When Ruud let a 5-1 lead slip away and an energised Fritz leveled the match at 6-6 of their first profession assembly, it was anybody’s match within the third-set tiebreak.

    But Ruud saved his cool and received 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(6) on his third match level, advancing to the match’s semi-finals for the second 12 months in a row.

    “It was a close one,” Ruud mentioned. “I guess we were both nervous there at the end but luckily I was able to pull through.”

    Auger-Aliassime, who’s now coached by Nadal’s uncle and long-time mentor Toni, who’s sitting in his field, will face Fritz in his last group match for an opportunity to advance to the final 4.

    “I had one match to get used to the conditions and I felt my game was better today, I was hitting it with precision and consistency,” Auger-Aliassime mentioned.

    Published On:

    Nov 16, 2022

  • ATP World Tour Finals: Rafael Nadal all however knocked out after loss to Felix Auger-Aliassime

    Rafael Nadal is on the verge of elimination from the ATP World Tour Finals after his straight-sets loss to Felix Auger-Aliassime. Nadal must rely upon the results of the Thomas Fritz-Casper Ruud match to remain alive within the competitors.

    New Delhi,UPDATED: Nov 15, 2022 21:10 IST

    Nadal’s probabilities of staying alive within the competitors has been drastically lowered (Courtesy: Reuters)

    By India Today Web Desk: Rafael Nadal suffered his fourth staright loss on Tuesday to all however verify his exit from the AT World Tour finals with a straight units defeat to Felix Auger-Aliassime.

    Auger-Aliassime downed the top-seeded Nadal with a rating of 6-3, 6-4. This implies that the Spaniard might be eradicated from the event relying on the opposite outcome within the Green Group match between Taylor Fritz and Casper Ruud. This implies that Nadal won’t be able to safe the World No.1 rating.

    Both males got here into Tuesday’s contest in search of their first win within the ATP Finals after dropping their opening matches on Sunday. It was a shaky begin for Auger-Aliassime from the get-go, however someway he managed to get by the sport and didn’t lose one other level on his serve till 3-3. The 22-year-old put ahead a powerful show on Tuesday as he continued to dominate on the primary serve factors.

    Nadal out of the blue discovered himself in all types of bother as he misplaced 4 straight factors on his serve and Auger-Aliassime was in a position to shut the primary set in 53 minutes with a rating of 6-3.

    The Spaniard’s struggles continued within the second set as he produced eight unforced errors within the first three video games to seek out himself trailing 1-2.

    Nadal was compelled to fend off a break level earlier than incomes his first one of many sport to get again on degree phrases with the 22-year-old within the second set.

    However, the previous World No.1 didn’t capitalize and Auger-Aliassime regained the lead and went forward by 4-2. The 22-year-old continued to outplay Nadal and served out a 6-3,6-4 to dent the Spaniard’s probabilities of staying within the competitors.

    Nadal will now want Thomas Fritz to defeat Casper Ruud in straight units of their encounter afterward. Nadal will then have to defeat Ruud by straight units to make it to the ultimate 4 levels.

    However, the previous World No.1 might be eradicated if Ruud wins or Fritz wins in three units.

    Published On:

    Nov 15, 2022

  • ATP World Tour Finals: Andrey Rublev secures comeback win over former World No.1 Daniil Medvedev

    Andrey Rublev was in a position to safe a surprising comeback win over compatriot and former World No.1 Daniil Medvedev on Monday. Rublev received the match by a rating of 6-7, 6-3, 7-6.

    New Delhi,UPDATED: Nov 14, 2022 21:44 IST

    Rublev introduced his A-game on Monday in opposition to Medvedev (Courtesy: Reuters)

    By India Today Web Desk: Russia’s Andrey Rublev shocked compatriot Daniil Medvedev on Monday as he secured a comeback win over the previous World No.1 on the ATP World Tour Finals.

    Rublev received the conflict 6-7, 6-3, 7-6 on the day as he dumped the fourth-seeded Medvedev from the competitors. The Russian duo has been regulars on the Nitto ATP finals with Medvedev showing since 2019. Rublev was but to transcend the round-robin stage within the competitors whereas his compatriot has made it to the ultimate on the final two events.

    Both males introduced their A-game on the day and Rublev picked it up from the place he left within the duo’s earlier encounter at Cincinnati final yr. He regarded like the higher participant than Medvedev within the opening exchanges of the match and took a 3-1 lead. The former World No.1 discovered himself to be fortunate on a few web cords earlier than Rublev dedicated a double fault.

    Medvedev saved two set factors on his serve earlier than he compelled a tiebreak the place Rublev let go of one other 4 set factors. Ultimately, Medvedev took residence the primary set and the benefit within the match.

    However, Rublev obtained the early break once more within the second set regardless of dropping momentum towards the tip of the primary one. The 25-year-old remained calm and was in a position to break the previous World No.1 for the second time to take residence the second set with a rating of 6-3.

    With all to play for within the third and last set, Medvedev continued to battle together with his unforced errors rely going as much as 20. However, the previous World No.1 continued to chase his compatriot and was in a position to make it 5-5 and finally compelled a tiebreak.

    The breaker began with an unbelievable 38-shot rally which was received by Rublev, who took a slender lead at 3-2 within the last set. He would then lastly shut the sport at 6-7 6-3 7-6 to win the match and file his third-ever victory on the ATP Finals.

    Published On:

    Nov 14, 2022

  • Taylor Fritz stuns Rafael Nadal, Casper Ruud beats Auger-Aliassime at ATP Finals

    Taylor Fritz shocked Rafael Nadal 7-6(3) 6-1 to make a profitable debut on the ATP Finals in Turin whereas Norway’s Casper Ruud kick-started the round-robin stage earlier on Sunday with a win over Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime.

    Spanish high seed Nadal arrived in Italy having solely competed in a single singles match since his fourth-round U.S. Open loss two months in the past and his lack of latest competitors confirmed as he was unable to maintain tempo with Fritz because the match wore on.

    “I need more matches to play at this kind of level, even if I am practicing well, much better than how I am competing, without a doubt. That’s normal,” Nadal advised reporters.

    “At the end is not the ideal tournament and probably part of the season to come back after a couple of months without being on the tour because you don’t have time to get confidence.”

    Taylor ON TOP 🔥

    The second @Taylor_Fritz97 claimed his first #NittoATPFinals win over high seed Nadal! pic.twitter.com/jLGxAp3Lu6

    — Tennis TV (@TennisTV) November 13, 2022

    Nadal grabbed a 6-5 lead within the opening set when he held to like for the fifth time however then misplaced the opening three factors of the tiebreaker and couldn’t discover his means again.

    After neither participant dropped serve within the first set, Fritz broke early within the second for a 3-1 lead and once more to drag forward 5-1 earlier than closing out the match on his subsequent service recreation when Nadal despatched a forehand lengthy.

    “Once I got through that first set I just wanted to do the same thing I was doing for the second set: take care of my serve and just look to capitalise on the break points when I got them,” Fritz stated in his on-court interview.

    “I knew coming out here this was going to be a big match if I want to make it out of the group, it’s a really important one.”

    For Fritz, the victory marked his first over a top-three opponent in 12 makes an attempt and improved him to 2-2 in head-to-head conferences with Nadal having crushed him at Indian Wells in March.

    Spain’s Rafael Nadal returns the ball to United States’ Taylor Fritz throughout their singles tennis match of the ATP World Tour Finals, on the Pala Alpitour in Turin, Italy, Sunday, Nov. 13, 2022. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

    Canadian Auger-Aliassime has been in elegant type on the finish of the season, profitable three tournaments in a row earlier than a semi-final run on the Paris Masters, however was not at his greatest whereas falling 7-6(4) 6-4 to Ruud.

    Although he fired 26 winners previous world quantity 4 Ruud, they had been offset by 26 unforced errors because the Norwegian wrapped up the victory to get on the board within the Green Group, which additionally has Nadal and Fritz.

    “I think this is some of the best level that I’ve played since the U.S. Open,” stated Ruud, who reached the ultimate of the 12 months’s final Grand Slam in New York.

    “The last couple of months have been a little bit of a struggle, I have to honestly say that, but you have to accept it as well. You will face difficult moments in your career, and maybe these last couple of months was one of those.”

    Auger-Aliassime had received 16 matches in a row to win titles in Florence, Antwerp and Basel final month.

    But Ruud, a semi-finalist final 12 months, stamped his authority within the tiebreak and didn’t face a single break level within the match as he beat the Canadian for the second time this 12 months.

  • Novak Djokovic managing wrist subject, ATP Finals stays his aim

    Novak Djokovic mentioned he was bothered by a wrist drawback in the course of the Laver Cup in London and that his prolonged absence from the Tour not too long ago may very well be in charge.

    The three-day match in London’s O2 Arena was Djokovic’s first occasion because the Serb gained his twenty first Grand Slam singles title at Wimbledon in early July.

    The 35-year-old, who missed the North American hardcourt swing and the U.S. Open because of not being vaccinated towards COVID-19, produced a stunning efficiency on his return to the Tour on Saturday by profitable his singles and doubles matches.

    However, he misplaced to Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime on the ultimate day of competitors on Sunday.

    “I have been struggling with my right wrist for the last four, five days, to be honest. I have been keeping it under control,” Djokovic informed reporters.

    “The two matches yesterday probably had an effect. Today was not easy. I couldn’t serve as fast or as accurately as I would like to. That has affected the whole game.”

    Djokovic mentioned qualifying for November’s ATP Finals in Turin remained his aim and that he’ll play a match in Tel Aviv this week adopted by an occasion in Kazakhstan subsequent week after which the Paris Masters on the finish of October.

    His Wimbledon victory ensures him a spot within the Tour-ending Finals if he stays ranked on this planet’s prime 20.

    Djokovic, who’s presently ranked seventh, mentioned the wrist subject may very well be because of a mixture of things.

    “Could be not playing matches almost three months, and then conditions here are such that the balls are really big and slow,” he mentioned.

    “You always have to generate a lot of wrist action and speed, which could be the case why I have been feeling soreness.”

  • ATP Finals create a buzz in Turin, however will Italy’s gamers observe?

    By Christopher Clarey
    There is a large world map within the atrium of the five-star lodge in Turin the place the main gamers stayed throughout the ATP Finals that ended Sunday.
    It was not the best metaphor. Though males’s tennis is undoubtedly international, with tournaments on six continents (no Antarctica for now), it’s not in the intervening time an intercontinental sport on the prime.
    As the 2021 tour season ends, the highest 10 in singles is solely European: from 34-year-old Novak Djokovic of Serbia at No. 1 to 20-year-old Jannik Sinner of Italy at No. 10.
    Though there have been some males’s tour executives who believed that it might have been a wiser development technique and safer monetary determination to take the ATP Finals elsewhere — see Tokyo or Singapore — it’s definitely in tune with the instances that the tour’s year-end championship remained in Europe.
    The shock was that it got here to Turin. The ATP Finals have been in London on the O2 Arena from 2009 to 2020, serving as an annual second serving to of big-time tennis for a significant metropolis and main media hub that already had Wimbledon.
    But Turin, the brand new host for a five-year run, is a really totally different and extra dangerous play. Though Turin is the capital of Italy’s Piedmont area, it is just the nation’s fourth most populous metropolis behind Rome, Milan and Naples. It has a tennis tradition — golf equipment and courts are frequent — however doesn’t have an everyday males’s or ladies’s tour occasion and has by no means produced a significant tennis star, though Lorenzo Sonego, 26, a Turin native at present ranked twenty seventh, is coaching and taking part in onerous to vary that (he has victories over Djokovic and 2020 U.S. Open champion Dominic Thiem).
    Fiat, the carmaker that when dominated the town, has moved on, leaving an financial void. Turin has its strengths: superb wine and meals, an Egyptian museum, a sublime metropolis middle and the soccer membership Juventus. But what gave it the sting for indoor tennis was the Pala Alpitour, the most important, newest indoor area in Italy. It was constructed to host ice hockey on the Winter Olympics in 2006, and Turin’s leaders have been desirous to rekindle the Olympic spirit and lift the town’s worldwide profile with one other vital sports activities occasion.
    That could also be more difficult than they assume. The ATP Finals is arguably essentially the most prestigious annual males’s tennis occasion outdoors the 4 Grand Slam tournaments. Only the highest eight males qualify in singles, and it’s a aim and speaking level all through the season in addition to one of many largest paydays and rating boosts out there. An undefeated champion will get 1,500 rating factors: greater than any event outdoors the Grand Slam occasions, whose champions get 2,000.
    But the ATP Finals are nonetheless nowhere close to as massive a fishbowl. Winning is essential for a champion’s legacy however not important. Rafael Nadal has by no means managed it, but nobody is about to take him off the quick listing of the sport’s biggest gamers.
    Three of the previous 5 ATP Finals champions — Grigor Dimitrov, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev, who gained in 2018 and once more Sunday — have but to win a Grand Slam title.
    But with Nadal, Thiem and Roger Federer out of motion for prolonged intervals as they get better from vital accidents, Turin acquired one of the best of what was out there. No. 1 Djokovic, No. 2 Daniil Medvedev and No. 3 Zverev all reached the semifinals after coming via their round-robin teams, and all expressed satisfaction with their new playground even when Medvedev did grumpily and briefly examine it to a minor-league “challenger” occasion throughout his opening match when he had bother getting the balls delivered to him on the tempo he prefers earlier than serving.
    There have been definitely extra vital points, some past organizers’ management. The coronavirus pandemic made advance planning a problem. Prize cash was minimize in half — from $14.5 million to $7.25 million — largely due to the diminished area capability. Though Turin had been projecting a 75% restrict, the Italian authorities finally settled on 60%, which turned away tons of of followers on quick discover. Once inside, there have been lengthy traces and a scarcity of concessions (the sponsors gave the impression to be doing simply superb).
    But the keenness was actual and audible, even with simply over 7,600 followers within the stands. It was actual in Turin’s historic middle as properly, the place shopkeepers put tennis rackets of their showcases and home windows and the town turned Piazza San Carlo right into a tennis village with massive video screens and a small-scale courtroom.
    Is it higher to take an occasion just like the ATP Finals to a world metropolis the place will probably be at most a sideshow or to carry it to a extra modest place like Turin the place it may possibly and certain will dominate?
    Option No. 2 has its charms.
    “The Turin idea was that the city would really embrace the event, and we would have done even more if there had not been COVID,” stated Andrea Gaudenzi, chairman of the ATP Tour. “Overall, I think we have to improve a few things, especially in the fan experience outside the arena when you come without the corporate ticket. But overall, I’m personally pleased with the on-court experience.”
    The potential draw back is that you simply create waves in a small pond as an alternative of ripples in vaster uncharted waters that may assist develop the sport long run. With the Big Three nearing the tip of their careers, males’s tennis is unquestionably in for a lull.
    But after all of the empty stadiums of the pandemic, buzz is a good bigger advantage, and Italy is abuzz over tennis and rightly so. When Turin and the Italian Tennis Federation started lobbying for the ATP Finals in 2018, Sinner and Matteo Berrettini had not but damaged via (and Gaudenzi, a former Italian star, had not but change into chairman of the ATP).
    As it turned out, Berrettini, 25, a Wimbledon finalist this yr, certified instantly for Turin and when he needed to withdraw after one match with an belly damage, Sinner was able to step in because the alternate. The environment when he performed was one of the best of the week.
    “We never could have imagined that two Italian players would take part in the first ATP Finals in Turin,” stated Angelo Binaghi, president of the Italian Tennis Federation.
    That is kind of a bonus, and in gentle of Sinner’s and Berrettini’s youth and expertise, it might not be a one-time bonus.
    This article initially appeared in The New York Times.

  • Alexander Zverev downs Daniil Medvedev to win second ATP Finals crown

    Germany’s Alexander Zverev swept apart Russian world quantity two and defending champion Daniil Medvedev 6-4 6-4 to win the ATP Finals on Sunday, claiming the title for the second time in his profession.
    Zverev, who additionally beat world primary Novak Djokovic on Saturday, turns into solely the fourth participant to beat the highest two gamers on the planet within the semis and closing of the season-ending event.
    Victory was additionally candy revenge for Zverev who misplaced in three units to Medvedev within the spherical robin stage, and got here into the match having misplaced his final 5 conferences towards the Russian.
    “You keep talking about the perfect match… It was great. I mean in the final against somebody I had lost five times in a row, so I had to play one of my best matches,” Zverev stated in a post-match interview.
    “I’m happy about that, happy to go on holidays with this win now… There’s no better way to end this season than winning here, so I’m obviously fairly happy, but I’m also now very much looking forward to next year already.”
    The 24-year-old Zverev, who didn’t face a single break level within the closing, has now gained six titles in six finals this 12 months — together with Olympic gold in Tokyo and two Masters titles in Madrid and Cincinnati.

  • ATP Finals: Ruud joins Djokovic, Medvedev and Zverev in semis

    A 12 months in the past, Casper Ruud had simply cracked the highest 30 within the rankings. Look at him now.
    As the eighth and remaining qualifier for the ATP Finals, the 22-year-old Norwegian has joined top-ranked Novak Djokovic, No. 2 Daniil Medvedev and No. 3 Alexander Zverev within the semifinals of the elite season-ending occasion. And he’s accomplished so in model.

    🇳🇴 C A S P E R 🇳🇴
    The 22-year-old outlasts Andrey Rublev 2-6, 7-5, 7-6(5) to achieve the semifinals of the ATP Finals in Turin!
    🎥: @TennisTV | @CasperRuud98 pic.twitter.com/o6ZXH1S2cI
    — US Open Tennis (@usopen) November 19, 2021

    Ruud confirmed off aggressive ways within the decisive tiebreaker and served an ace on his second match level in a 2-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5) victory over Andrey Rublev in his remaining round-robin match on Friday to safe his sudden spot within the final 4. The fifth-ranked Rublev had overwhelmed Ruud in all 4 of their earlier matches. I can thank my arm that I used to be in a position to hit an ace on match level, as a result of I used to be so nervous, Ruud mentioned.
    Ruud will subsequent face Medvedev, the U.S. Open champion and the defending champion of this occasion, which is being performed in Turin for the primary time after 12 years in London. Djokovic and Zverev will renew their budding rivalry within the different semifinal Saturday.
    Even although I’m the fourth man I don’t think about myself the fourth-best participant on the planet, Ruud mentioned. Tomorrow might be a enjoyable day most likely the most important match of my profession. Later, round-robin play concluded with Djokovic beating British alternate Cameron Norrie 6-2, 6-1 in a largely meaningless match. Norrie changed the injured Stefanos Tsitsipas, who’s ranked No. 4.
    I performed effectively tonight from the primary to the final level,” Djokovic mentioned. “That’s positively encouraging for the following match tomorrow, which might be more durable.