The ATP Finals is an amalgamation of the entire ATP Tour season. The event only features the world’s best eight eligible singles players and doubles teams, so expect that the tournament will showcase the best tennis the world has to offer.
The event in Turin has only just begun, but we’ve already been blessed with the best ATP Finals 2023 news, as Novak Djokovic bolsters his case to be in the pantheon of the all-time greats by securing his eighth-year-end No. 1 ranking.
Meanwhile, hometown hero and one of the ATP Finals 2023 odds favourites, Jannik Skinner, shined in front of his compatriots with a dominating win against Stefanos Tsitsipas to start off the prestigious event.
Read on below as SBOTOP serves you the latest updates on the inaugural Nitto ATP Finals.
Novak Djokovic beats Holger Rune
After missing the Shanghai Masters, Djokovic is back to business, as his bid for the World No. 1 ranking was tested early at the ATP Finals. The 36-year-old showed the tennis world that he is still the king of the sport as he overcame Holger Rune across three demanding sets before clinching his eighth-year-end No. 1 ranking, surpassing Pete Sampras with 6, followed by Federer, Nadal, and Jimmy Connors with 5 each.
The opening match at the ATP Finals is already an all-time great. The Serbian legend bested the formidable Holger Rune with a score of 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (1/7), 6-3. With this win, Djokovic extends his year-round record to 52-5, secures his year-end ranking, and guarantees himself a historic 400th week overall as World No. 1 in the November 20 edition of the ATP Rankings.
Rune, who played a sensational match, couldn’t help but admire his adversary’s greatness and was happy with the fact that he fared well with the 24-time Grand Slam champion. “We have had great matches always when we played,” Rune said. “Unfortunately I couldn’t do it today, but that’s how it is. I have to look forward and take the things out of the match I was happy with, take the things out of the match that I wasn’t happy with, and go back to the practise tomorrow and try to make them better.”
The match was not a cakewalk for Djokovic whatsoever. “I saw in the first game, when he fired shots from the baseline in the first three or four points, I knew that it was going to be a tough life for me. If I wanted to win this match, I was going to have to work really hard… He was feeling the ball well, he was sharp. Very aggressive, every short ball he was coming in and he served terrific.” said Djokovic. “It took everything,”
“You could see there was a lot of emotions on the court. I could feel it. I was eager to win tonight & get that monkey off my back. I won Paris, which put me in a much better position rankings wise. I knew coming into Torino, I’d just have to win 1 match. A big goal is achieved. Everything else now is a bonus.”
With this pressure off his shoulders, the 36-year-old now aims to have yet another strong tournament and set another milestone by passing Roger Federer for a seventh ATP Finals crown.
Jannik Sinner shines on home soil
Jannik Sinner is off to a good start in his ATP Finals campaign, as he overcame Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-4 in front of the Italian supporters at the Pala Alpitour. Proudly representing his country, this is just the third time an Italian player has won a singles match at the ATP Finals, after Matteo Berrettini defeated Dominic Thiem in 2019 and Sinner beat Hubert Hurkacz in 2021.
Sinner had been locked in since the beginning of the match. “He was attacking a lot, serving really well, kept his composure in those crucial moments that were a few today. He kept it quite clean and didn’t get too affected by any situation that came his way.” Tsitsipas said about Sinner after the match.
The 22-year-old Italian was evidently psyched to be competing in the prestigious tournament, as he should be after a stellar 2023 campaign. This year, Sinner has won four tour-level trophies in 2023, including his maiden ATP Masters 1000 crown in Toronto.
“I was excited to step on court and opening the Finals is really, really special,” Sinner said. “I knew it was going to be very tough but I think I handled the situation well. I tried to stay aggressive and I am very happy with the performance. I am happy to start off with a win and hopefully I can continue with this intensity.”
Alcaraz aims to bounce back after disappointment in Paris
Most of the tennis world was shocked when Roman Safiullin defeated World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz in their opening match at the Paris Masters.
The two-time Grand Slam champion got bested 6-3, 6-4 by world No. 45 Safiullin, who played the game of his life, converting four of eight break points and saving two of the four break points Alcaraz managed to produce.
“It’s even more difficult, above all for me, to lose in the first rounds of a tournament that you expect to make the finals or where you expect a lot of yourself; it hurts. It hurts a lot,” Alcaraz told reporters after the loss.
This time, the 20-year-old Spaniard is looking to close out his year strong in Turin. His goal to overtake Djokovic in the rankings is over, but Alcaraz is still hungry to improve his game, avenge his Paris blunder, and get some points along the way.
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