the ATP Finals in Turin constitute the year-end of professional tournaments in world tennis. This traditional competition is about a lot of prestige for the players – and a lot of money.
It should be the big spectacle at the end of a long season: The top eight tennis professionals of the current season will compete at the ATP finals in Turin. Rafael Nadal (Spain), Casper Ruud (Norway), Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece), Novak Djokovic (Serbia), Daniil Medvedev (Russia), Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada), Andrey Rublev (Russia) and Taylor Fritz (USA). fight for the highly coveted trophy for a week (November 13th to 20th). The game is played in two previously drawn groups, from which the semi-finals then crystallize.
World number one Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) had to withdraw at short notice due to a torn abdominal muscle. Fritz is there for him. The young, up-and-coming Dane Holger Rune (19) is available as a substitute if one of the players should get injured.
Germany’s best player, twice finals-Winner (2021, 2018) and defending champion Alexander Zverev, is not qualified this time. After the 25-year-old joined the French Open suffered a complicated torn ligament in the summer, he was no longer able to take part in tournaments and thus fell out of the standings.
Alexander Zverev tore all three lateral ligaments in his right ankle in the semifinals of the French Open.
Record amount before payout
This season-ending tournament isn’t just about prestige, though. As is usual in professional tennis, it is also about a lot of money. The winner is guaranteed to receive the proud sum of around 2.2 million euros. For comparison: This is similar to winning one of the four sub-years Grand Slam-Tournaments (French Open: 2.2 million euros; US Open: 2.6 million euros; Australian Open: 1.9 million euros; Wimbledon: 2.3 million euros).
But, the organizers have come up with a very special incentive for the pros: If a player manages to remain undefeated during the group games and then grab the title via the semi-finals and final, a real windfall will come their way. Just an undefeated player would collect a total of 4.7 million euros. The highest prize money ever paid to a single player in tennis.
Every match like a final
The fivefold finalsWinner Novak Djokovic (35), meanwhile, has set his sights on breaking the record set by Swiss Roger Federer, who has won the trophy six times and who recently retired. “That’s one of my biggest goals. Every match there is like a final. There are no easy games. You have to be fit and fresh.”said Djokovic ahead of the tournament.
Whether Rafael Nadal is at the height of his creativity after his protracted foot injury remains to be seen. For the 36-year-old it could be the last chance at this one events due to his advanced age for a professional tennis player. Curiously, the Spaniard has never won this title in his incredibly successful career (92 tournament successes). “I’ll do my best. And I’ll give myself the chance to enjoy the tournament”according to Nadal.
Hoping for the big coup
Six of the eight participants are aged 26 or younger, signaling an impending change at the top of the world. Daniil Medvedev (2020) and Stefanos Tsitsipas (2019) have also already managed to win the tournament. The 24-year-old Greek had already signed up for the four times ATP Finals qualified. With his fifth participation he is now hoping for the big coup again. “It’s been a great year so far, but it could also be an outstanding year”said Tsitsipas. All participants probably share this hope.