This season, dominated by superstars Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, was a memorable and maybe era-defining one on the ATP Tour.
However there’s another event to play — and there is a lot on the road.
Whereas {most professional} tennis gamers have began their blink-and-you’ll-miss-it offseason, the elite males are nonetheless in motion and centered on closing out 2025 with the ATP Finals crown. Held on the Pala Alpitour area in Turin, Italy, for the fifth straight yr, the occasion options the highest eight singles gamers and eight doubles groups and will get underway Sunday with round-robin group play. After six days of competitors, with every participant or pair enjoying three matches, the highest two from their respective teams advance to the semifinals.
The event ends Nov. 16 with an undefeated singles champion incomes a record-breaking $5,071,000, and the profitable doubles workforce making as much as $959,300. An undefeated victor, in each singles and doubles, additionally earns 1,500 in rankings factors. (A title-winning participant or workforce would earn much less, in prize cash and rating factors, in the event that they lose a match throughout group play.)
Undecided what to anticipate or who to look at for within the season’s final ATP event? Here is every little thing you’ll want to know.
Who’s in
Singles
Jimmy Connors group
1. Carlos Alcaraz
4. Novak Djokovic
6. Taylor Fritz
7. Alex de Minaur
Bjorn Borg group
2. Jannik Sinner
3. Alexander Zverev
5. Ben Shelton
8. Felix Auger-Aliassime or Lorenzo Musetti (extra on this beneath)
Doubles
Peter Fleming group
1. Julian Money and Lloyd Glasspool
3. Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos
6. Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz
7. Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori
John McEnroe group
2. Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten
4. Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic
5. Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski
8. Christian Harrison and Evan King
The Large Two’s battle for No. 1
It is arduous to adequately categorical simply how spectacular Alcaraz and Sinner had been this season. The 2 — who’ve greater than a 5,000-point hole between them and the remainder of the tour within the rankings — cut up the 4 main titles, with Alcaraz claiming the French Open and the US Open and Sinner taking the Australian Open and Wimbledon. They confronted each other within the ultimate of three of these Slams.
And their fierce grip on the trophies remained sturdy even away from the majors. Alcaraz received six different titles on the yr, together with three at Masters 1000 occasions, and Sinner claimed three titles this fall, together with on the Paris Masters earlier this month.
However whereas the deficit between the Large Two and everybody else is huge, little or no separates Alcaraz and Sinner — and the yearend No. 1 distinction can be in play. Sinner, 24, narrowly reclaimed the highest spot after his victory in Paris however will probably be a brief stint. Alcaraz, 22, will return to the place main into the ATP Finals and can be capable to stay there for the remainder of the yr if he goes undefeated in his three round-robin matches or reaches the ultimate.
Alcaraz, who was the yearend No. 1 in 2022, has by no means received the ATP Finals, and Sinner received the title final yr and completed the 2024 season on high of the rankings. If it isn’t already crystal clear, each are unquestionably the favorites coming into the occasion. The query is: Can anybody cease them?
The Djokovic issue
There was loads of hypothesis round Novak Djokovic’s standing within the yearend occasion as a result of he has performed sparingly in the course of the second half of the season. Outdoors of the Slams, he has appeared in simply two tournaments since Could, and he skipped the ultimate Masters 1000 occasion of the yr in Paris earlier this month.
Djokovic, 38, formally certified for the ATP Finals final month following a season by which he reached the semifinals in any respect 4 majors and received the 250-level title in Geneva. He has been elusive about his plans to play, although.
“We’ve affirmation that Djokovic shall be in Turin,” Angelo Binaghi, the pinnacle of the Italian Tennis Federation, stated on Italian radio channel Rai Gr Parlamento on Monday.
However the 24-time main champion denied Binaghi’s claims Tuesday.
“I do not know the place [Binaghi] bought this info from. Definitely not from me or my workforce,” Djokovic advised reporters following a win within the spherical of 16 on the Hellenic Championship in Athens — at which his brother Djordje is the event director. “I’ll make my choice on the finish of this event.”
As of Friday, Djokovic nonetheless hasn’t shared his plans, however he hasn’t made it to the tip of the Athens event both. On Saturday, he’ll play in his third ultimate of the season as he takes on Lorenzo Musetti (extra on what makes this an extremely compelling matchup beneath) and can then absolutely announce whether or not he’s going to Turin or calling it a season.
It doesn’t matter what he does, it marks Djokovic’s 18th time qualifying for the ATP Finals — tying Roger Federer’s document — and if he performs, he could have the prospect to increase his personal mark by profitable the title for the eighth time. Djokovic withdrew from the 2024 version however received it the earlier two years. Although even he has admitted his struggles in going through Alcaraz and Sinner, maybe Turin could possibly be the positioning the place he will get his revenge.
If he performs, that’s.
The People
Ben Shelton and Taylor Fritz shall be in motion in Italy, and it marks the primary time two American males shall be competing for the yearend singles title since Andy Roddick and James Blake did so in 2006. Although neither is taken into account a favourite (see the earlier part on the Large Two for readability right here), each have had sturdy seasons and are able to reaching the semifinals or pulling off the final word upset.
In actual fact, Fritz returns to the ATP Finals after reaching the ultimate in 2024, so he is aware of precisely what it takes. Following his breakthrough season final yr, by which he additionally reached the ultimate on the US Open, he reached his first Wimbledon semifinals this yr along with making the quarterfinals on the US Open and profitable two ATP titles. He appeared within the ultimate on the Japan Open in September and misplaced to Alcaraz. Making his third look on the ATP Finals, Fritz reached the semifinals in his debut in 2022 and shall be trying to advance out of group play but once more.
Although Fritz, 28, has the expertise on his facet, Shelton certified for the primary time this yr after a momentous season. Shelton, 23, who’s ranked a profession excessive No. 6, reached the semifinals on the Australian Open and the quarterfinals at Wimbledon along with profitable his first Masters 1000-level title on the Canadian Open. A shoulder harm derailed him on the US Open, and he was in the end sidelined for over a month — however nonetheless managed to safe his spot in Turin with a quarterfinal run on the Paris Masters on the finish of October.
Shelton stated he was making an attempt to not give attention to making the ATP Finals whereas enjoying in Paris, however he could not cover how a lot it meant to him after formally punching his ticket.
“I knew on the finish of the day that if I needed to be answerable for my very own future I needed to exit and win immediately,” Shelton stated after qualifying. “And I knew after I stepped out on the court docket that I used to be going to need to die on this court docket earlier than I went down. … It is big. It is big for me. It was at all times an enormous purpose, [and] most significantly, to get again to this stage I performed immediately. That is the place I need to be at.”
On the doubles facet, the all-American duo of Christian Harrison and Evan King claimed the final spot following a exceptional debut season collectively. Coming into the yr, neither Harrison, 31, nor King, 33, had ever received an ATP title. This yr, they’ve received three, together with on the 500-level occasions in Dallas and Mexico, and reached their first main semifinals on the French Open. They’re the primary American workforce to make the ATP Finals since eventual champions Mike Bryan and Jack Sock did so in 2018, and can look to finish 2025 like their compatriots did by incomes their largest title but.
The procrastinators
Alcaraz clinched his berth for Turin in July, and Sinner adopted go well with the next month, however different gamers waited till the final minute to finalize their journey plans. (Warning: For many who wish to plan their journeys and ebook their flights months upfront, this part won’t be for you.)
Like Shelton, Alex de Minaur certified for the event (for the second straight yr) on Oct. 30 following a profitable run on the Paris Masters. And that left only one spot remaining. At the moment, Musetti was subsequent in step with a 290-point lead over Felix Auger-Aliassime.
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However that is the place issues bought fascinating. Musetti had misplaced within the spherical of 32 in Paris and Auger-Aliassime then seized on the chance by reaching the ultimate. Although a win would have clinched the spot, he misplaced to Sinner however nonetheless held a 160-point lead over Musetti coming into the final week of the common season.
Nevertheless, a knee harm pressured the Canadian to withdraw from the event, placing destiny solely in Musetti’s fingers. Enjoying in Athens, Musetti can solely clinch the berth by profitable the title on Saturday. Sure, simply at some point earlier than the ATP Finals are set to start in a foreign country.
And nonetheless unbelievable it would sound, that’s the place we stand now. As talked about earlier than, Musetti will face Djokovic on Saturday within the ultimate. It has been a difficult week for Musetti — who wanted three units towards Stan Wawrinka within the spherical of 16 and saved match level towards Sebastian Korda in a good three-set semifinal Friday — however he has one way or the other discovered a solution to hold his hopes of qualifying for his first ATP Finals alive.
Can he finish his miraculous run Saturday with the trophy and a ticket to Turin? Or will Auger-Aliassime get the bid? Keep tuned.
Double the enjoyable
Whereas Harrison and King will search to shock the sphere, Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz will look to defend their trophy in Italy. The German duo made their preliminary look collectively as a workforce in 2024 and walked away with the final word parting present. They received the titles in Halle and Shanghai this yr, along with a semifinal displaying on the Australian Open. Can they be part of the listing of repeat champions?
Perhaps! Nevertheless it will not be simple. Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos received each the French Open and the US Open this season, in addition to three different titles, and have a 5-0 document in finals in 2025. They reached the ultimate in 2023 (and Granollers received the title in 2012) and may simply be the favourite to win all of it.
Australian Open champions Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten and Wimbledon winners Julian Money and Lloyd Glasspool are additionally within the subject. Heliovaara and Patten are coming off a victorious run on the Paris Masters and the top-seeded British pair of Money and Glasspool reached an astounding 11(!) tour finals in 2025 and received seven of them. Each of these groups will definitely be extra motivated than ever to shut out their milestone seasons with another trophy.
