The Nitto ATP Finals are just around the corner. The tennis season is set to reach its dramatic finale in Turin in November, and the stars of the men’s tennis world will all be looking to have the last word on the year. It’s also the last opportunity for bettors to enjoy tennis before the turn of the year.
So far, only 3 players have qualified and confirmed to attend the ATP Finals, leaving space wide open for 5 more players to qualify for the final tournament of the season. Many of these players have their own major storylines in the Race to Turin, and will be looking to capture the title from Jannik Sinner, the winner of the last two Championships.
The players already qualified
3 players are confirmed to be heading to Turin for the ATP Finals: Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev, and Ben Shelton. Zverev is top of the Race to Turin by some distance, having qualified all the way back in August by winning the Canadian Open, and he’ll be flying high after winning his first two Grand Slam titles in the French Open and the US Open.
Carlos Alcaraz’s victory at the start of the year in the Australian Open was enough to qualify him for the ATP Finals, despite the fact that he’s had an inconsistent season, plagued by a wrist injury that kept him out of 4 months worth of action. Ben Shelton is the most recent qualifier, who met the threshold during the Shanghai Masters in October.
Jannik Sinner meets the qualification criteria, but will not appear due to a knee injury that has ended his season. That’s a real blow to the home crowd, but also to bettors, as Sinner was a long term favourite to defend his title. New bettors using a Fanatics sign up bonus can avoid this with Fanatics’ Fair Play Max, which provides injury protection for eligible wagers, including on tennis.
The players fighting for qualification
Sinner dropping out leaves 5 more spots available. With late-season action underway at the ATP 500 events in Vienna and Basel, the battle for the remaining berths is tightly packed. Daniil Medvedev leads the way in the qualification race, but the chasing pack of 8 more players are all still mathematically alive.
Flavio Cobolli currently ranks 6th in the Race to Turin, and is likely to be the hometown hero if he does qualify, in lieu of Jannik Sinner. He reached his first Grand Slam final this year at Roland Garros , and would make his ATP Finals debut in front of his own fans.
Arthur Fils and Frances Tiafoe are ranked 7th and 8th and are currently in a qualification spot, and as of writing the final qualification spot is occupied by 19-year-old Spaniard Rafael Jódar. Jódar has been one of the surprises of the season, and was playing at the Next Gen level twelve months ago.
That doesn’t mean any of those in qualification spaces are safe. Alex de Minaur is trailing the cut by 230 points, and he still has time to make up the points deficit. Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul are both trailing too, and will need great performances in the remaining tournaments to qualify.
Then there is veteran Novak Djokovic. Despite a reduced schedule this year, he’s still in the hunt for a qualification spot, and if he performs well in the Paris Masters, he could book a trip to Turin to chase a record-extending eighth ATP Finals crown.
