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The order of play for the Nitto ATP Finals has been released. Home favourite Jannik Sinner will play 2020 champion Daniil Medvedev in the afternoon (not before 2:30 p.m. CET), and six-time champion Novak Djokovic will face second seed Carlos Alcaraz (not before 9 p.m. CET) in the evening.

It is a stacked lineup featuring the top four seeds. Sinner won the Green Group and Alcaraz won the Red Group, while Djokovic and Medvedev finished second in Green Group and Red Group, respectively.

Sinner and Medvedev have faced one another twice since the US Open, with the Italian winning finals in Beijing and Vienna. Medvedev leads their Lexus ATP Head2Head series 6-2.

Djokovic and Alcaraz have quickly developed an intriguing Lexus ATP Head2Head rivalry. Of their four clashes, one came in this year's Wimbledon final (won by Alcaraz) and another came in the Cincinnati final (won by Djokovic), widely considered one of the best matches of 2023.

In doubles, third seeds Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden will take on fifth seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos at 12 p.m., while defending champions Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury will play fourth seeds Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin not before 6:30 p.m.

After just 80 minutes on court Friday, Daniil Medvedev suffered his first loss of this year’s Nitto ATP Finals. But the World No. 3 is not dwelling on the defeat to Carlos Alcaraz, nor does he have time to. Medvedev is keeping a short memory, turning his attention to tomorrow's semi-final showdown against home favourite Jannik Sinner.

“For sure I would love to win this match, but it didn't happen. Now I have to forget it very fast and try to focus only on tomorrow,” said Medvedev, who finished second in Red Group. “At this moment, the only thing that is left is I have a match quite soon, less than 24 hours. I have to only [think] after I leave this room, ‘How do I beat Jannik tomorrow?’”

Prior to October, Medvedev was 6-0 against Sinner in their Lexus ATPHead2Head series. But with the Italian defeating him in the Beijing and Vienna championship matches, Medvedev is aiming to end his two-match skid against Sinner.

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“At this moment he's in top form. The results prove it. He can do everything,” Medvedev said. “He can serve-and-volley, but at the same time he can stay at the baseline and be very good. Some dropshots, slice, down the line, cross. He can do every shot and that's why he's a top player.

When Jannik Sinner defeated Holger Rune on Thursday evening, he did more than confirm Novak Djokovic’s berth into the semi-finals of the Nitto ATP Finals. The Italian also gave the World No. 1 a chance to continue chasing the history books.

Djokovic is two victories from breaking a tie with Roger Federer for the most titles in tournament history. If the 36-year-old triumphs on Sunday, he will claim his seventh Nitto ATP Finals trophy.

Most Nitto ATP Finals Titles

One year ago, aged 35, Djokovic became the oldest champion in the history of the event. He was five years older than the previous-oldest tournament winner, Federer (2011). Djokovic first emerged victorious at the season finale 15 years ago, in 2008, when it was known as the Tennis Masters Cup.

Djokovic is also trying to climb other Nitto ATP Finals leaderboards. He is currently tied with Bjorn Borg (16-6) for fifth in winning percentage at 72.7 per cent. With a 48-18 record at the event, he could climb past Boris Becker (36-13, 73.5%) to fourth on the list. Ilie Nastase (22-3, 88%) is in first.

Carlos Alcaraz has finished top of the Red Group after a 6-4, 6-4 win over Daniil Medvedev Friday in Turin, setting the stage for a semi-final showdown Saturday with six-time champion Novak Djokovic at the Nitto ATP Finals.

With the world’s Top 4 players all emerging from the group stage, Medvedev, the 2020 champion, will play Italian hope Jannik Sinner in the other semi-final.

Alcaraz and Medvedev produced a high-quality shotmaking show at the Pala Alpitour in Turin, where the Spaniard increased his aggression and moved forward to gain an advantage on the World No. 3.

“I think the most important thing that I did today was to stay strong mentally,” Alcaraz said in his on-court interview. “There were a few games on my serve that I was struggling a bit. His return game is amazing and he puts so much pressure on your serve, so I think to stay calm and stay strong mentally in those moments was the key to give myself a chance to win this match.”

A pivotal moment came when Alcaraz reeled off seven consecutive points in the first set, breaking Medvedev’s serve to love at 3-3. Alcaraz, who is making his Nitto ATP Finals debut, played with variety, often mixing in serve-and-volleys and drop shots to counter Medvedev’s deep court positioning. World No. 2 Alcaraz struck 20 winners and converted 16 of 21 net points to down Medvedev after one hour, 20 minutes.

There is a celebration of sustainability on show this year at the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin.

At the Pala Alpitour’s Fan Village, visitors can find out about title sponsor Nitto’s initiatives when it comes to promoting environmental causes and reducing CO2 emissions. Interactive games, a quiz and participation prizes are on offer to help engage fans with one of the most important topics of our time.

“Things like this help raise awareness for this topic with people who might not think about it much or aren’t aware of it,” said tennis fan Sandra Müller from Germany, whose favourite players are Carlos Alcaraz and Stefanos Tsitsipas. “It helps include more people in the theme of sustainability.”

Fans play a 'BATAK' game at the Nitto Booth in the Pala Alpitour's Fan Village. Photo Credit: Nitto/Siobhan Hennessy.

As well as an opportunity to take a photo with a replica of the Nitto ATP Finals trophy, visitors to the Nitto Booth can participate in a survey about Nitto, get a Nitto ATP Finals logo face sticker made from the company’s skin-friendly adhesive, and play a ‘BATAK’ reflective game, where they have to hit buttons to simulate the collection of CO2. Participants then receive tokens, which can be exchanged for a prize from a ‘Giant Gacha’ gumball machine.

Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden advanced to the semi-finals at the Nitto ATP Finals on Friday when they overcame Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski 6-4, 7-6(5) in a Red Group qualification decider in Turin.

Meeting for the sixth time this season, the third seeds produced a strong performance on serve, winning 88 per cent (35/40) of points behind their first delivery to improve to 2-1 in Red Group play after 84 minutes.

With their 40th tour-level win of the season, Bopanna and Ebden have improved to 3-3 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series. They have joined defending champions Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury in the knockout stages.

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The Ram and Salisbury are 2-0 in Red Group play this week and face already-eliminated Rinky Hijikata and Jason Kubler in their final round-robin match on Friday evening.

ATP and Dunlop are proud to announce the extension of their global partnership, through 2028.

Dunlop will continue as the Official Ball of the ATP Tour, a designation the Japanese brand has held since 2019. Dunlop has established itself as the No. 1 ball on the ATP Tour, with close to half of all tournaments proudly playing with Dunlop. Events include the Nitto ATP Finals, Next Gen ATP Finals presented by NEOM, and four ATP Masters 1000 events.

The extension will also see Dunlop become the Official Racket and Official Tennis Accessories (non-exclusive) of the ATP Tour. The brand will develop a dedicated ATP product line, including strings, grips, dampeners and racket bags, plus a special fan edition of the Dunlop FX racket as used by ATP Tour pro Jack Draper.

In parallel with continuous product testing and innovation, the partners will focus on advancing sustainability in tennis. Dunlop is currently developing eco-friendly materials for its tennis balls, increasing the use of recycled materials and reducing plastic in packaging – impacting resource consumption and waste on the ATP Tour and for millions of recreational players worldwide. This sustainability focus aligns with the ATP Serves mission and commitments under UN Sports for Climate Action.

Massimo Calvelli, ATP CEO, said: “Tennis balls are at the very core of our game. The Dunlop ATP ball is a consistent top-quality product, backed by continuous R&D, which allows our players to perform at their best. We’re thrilled to build on our successful partnership with Dunlop and to continue innovating together. Our joint reach across all levels of the game has huge potential to positively impact players and the planet.”

The ATP Challenger Tour prides itself in being a springboard for young stars seeking to develop their talent as they chase ranking points, prize money and a chance to make it to the biggest stages of the sport.

A prime example is the latest destination of the globetrotting circuit: Danderyd, Sweden, a municipality north of Stockholm where 18-year-olds Jakub Mensik and Alexander Blockx are among those in the quarter-finals of this week's Good to Great Challenger.

Next Gen ATP Finals qualifier Flavio Cobolli and last year’s champion of the 21-and-under event, Brandon Nakashima, are also in the last eight of the Challenger 75 event held at the prestigious Good to Great Tennis Academy, spearheaded by Nicklas Kulti, Mikael Tillstrom and tournament director Magnus Norman.

The Danderyd Challenger is the first event in Sweden at that level since 2018 (Bastad), marking the 46th country to host an ATP Challenger Tour tournament this season. Norman hopes they can be a mainstay.

“This is really important for Swedish tennis, this is something that has been needed for many, many years,” Norman told ATPTour.com. “Our goal first and foremost is to establish this Challenger in the calendar so players know during the end of the season, there is a Challenger in Sweden. Our vision is to create and start a few more Challengers in the region."

Holger Rune suffered his second three-set loss of the Nitto ATP Finals on Thursday against Jannik Sinner, the 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 defeat ending his Turin debut in the group stage. While the Dane rued his missed break point late in the final set, he remained grounded post-match, offering a positive perspective on his year as a whole.

"I had a good season. When you finish in the top eight, you can be proud of yourself," said the Dane, who travelled to Turin as an alternate in 2022. 

"I think that I could have done some things better this year — actually, a lot of things. That's how it is. It's a learning process. Next year I'm going to try to learn from this year... It's a good experience to be at this level."

Discussing his first Lexus ATP Head2Head loss in three meetings against Sinner, Rune said he felt the pressure knowing that he needed a win to advance to the semi-finals.

"Obviously he played very free. This match, he had absolutely nothing to lose," said the Dane, noting that Sinner's progress to the knockout rounds was secured before the match. "That probably put down his nerves a little bit. Who knows. But yeah, again, there was obviously a lot of pressure on me in this match. I tried to handle it as well as I could. I was close, but not enough."

Jannik Sinner’s Nitto ATP Finals charge has taken him all the way to the top of Green Group in Turin.

The home favourite wrapped a round-robin stage at the prestigious season finale on Thursday by downing Holger Rune 6-2, 5-7, 6-4. In doing so, he also ensured that six-time champion and World No. 1 progressed to the semi-finals alongside him.

Sinner backed up his opening wins against Stefanos Tsitsipas and Djokovic with a courageous third performance of the week inside the Pala Alpitour, converting two of four break points he earned to register a two-hour, 33-minute triumph in a match that swung back and forth.

Sinner looked the more comfortable player for the first set and a half of the match but his movement appeared compromised by an apparent back concern from midway through the second set. Digging deep, the Italian took the match deep into the deciding set and rode the raucous support from the stands to clinch his first win against Rune in three Lexus ATP Head2Head meetings between the two.

Now 60-14 for the 2023 season, Sinner is two matches away from winning five tour-level tournaments in a single year for the first time. The 22-year-old, who became champion in Montpellier, Beijing, Toronto and Vienna this season, is the first Italian to advance to the singles semi-finals in the 54-year history of the Nitto ATP Finals.

Editor's note: This story was translated from ATPTour.com/es

Daniil Medvedev was one of the first elite opponents Carlos Alcaraz crossed paths with. The Spaniard faced Medvedev in the second round at Wimbledon in 2021, when the then-18-year-old Spaniard had only ever played against one opponent from the Top 5 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings (Rafael Nadal, in Madrid, earlier that season).

Despite bowing out to Medvedev that day at the grass-court Grand Slam, Alcaraz left London feeling he had taken giant strides in his learning process.

On Friday, Alcaraz and Medvedev are due to clash at the Nitto ATP Finals in a match that is decisive for the Spaniard — a win will be enough to take him to the semifinals, while his opponent has already progressed thanks to his victory over Alexander Zverev on Wednesday night.

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The final day of group play at the Nitto ATP Finals will determine who joins Daniil Medvedev in advancing out of the Red Group. The third seed, already through to the Turin semi-finals with a 2-0 record, will meet Carlos Alcaraz in the afternoon before Alexander Zverev takes on Andrey Rublev in the evening.

With Alcaraz able to seal his semi-final place with a win, Zverev will be rooting for Medvedev in the hopes that his own qualification hopes are still alive when he takes the court.

[2] Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) vs. [3] Daniil Medvedev

Alcaraz earned his first career Nitto ATP Finals win by beating Andrey Rublev on Wednesday, improving to 1-1 in his Turin debut. Coupled with Medvedev's straight-sets win against Zverev, that result put the Spaniard's fate firmly in his own hands.

If Alcaraz can avenge his US Open semi-final defeat to Medvedev on Friday, the 20-year-old will join the third seed in the knockout rounds. 

“I will have to approach it differently," Alcaraz said of his mentality and tactics, referring back to their New York meeting. “Medvedev is one of the best players in the world... You have to play very well tactically, be patient and aggressive at the same time. It’s very difficult to beat him. You have to wait for the opportunity, but run and be calm, and get five or six shots in per point until the chance comes, while being aware that often it won’t.”

Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos maintained their perfect start at the 2023 Nitto ATP Finals with a 6-3, 6-4 triumph against Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni on Thursday in Turin.

The Spanish-Argentine pair Granollers and Zeballos notched a break in each set to wrap an 84-minute win and ensure they will finish at the top of Red Group with a 3-0 record. They will now prepare for their third Nitto ATP Finals semi-final as a team, having also reached that stage in 2020 (in London) and 2021 (in Turin).

The win also kept alive Granollers and Zeballos’ hopes of clinching the Year-End ATP Doubles No. 1 presented by Pepperstone honour for the first time. The pair is currently fifth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings, but can jump to a first-place finish by lifting the Nitto ATP Finals trophy for the first time as a team.

Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin advanced from Red Group in second position after they saved a match point before downing top seeds Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek 6-4, 3-6, 15-13 earlier on Thursday.

[SWEEPSTAKES]

If a long tried-and-tested approach does not seem to be working, do you stick with it, or twist?

That could have been the dilemma for Daniil Medvedev earlier this year after he fell to consecutive heavy defeats against Carlos Alcaraz in Indian Wells and at Wimbledon, respectively. Medvedev struggled to counter Alcaraz’s top-class net play and use of drop shots in both matches, leading to suggestions that he may need to alter his trademark deep return position in order to beat the Spaniard.

Yet Medvedev is not one to question his own game, which has helped him earn 20 tour-level titles and made him a No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. He ignored any external calls to stand further forward to counter Alcaraz’s serve-and-volley charges, and he was vindicated in style at the US Open semi-finals in September, when he ousted the Spaniard across four sets in New York.

“That was a great feeling, because for sure before the match, especially against someone like Carlos, everyone on the internet was saying, ‘He has no chance if he doesn't change his position’,” Medvedev told ATPTour.com. “You always have a chance. It's just that against some types of players, maybe you're going to be a little bit more vulnerable.”

Medvedev is 2-0 at this week's Nitto ATP Finals after defeating Andrey Rublev and Alexander Zverev in Turin. On Friday, he plays Alcaraz in his final match in Red Group, the pair's fifth Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting. The World No. 3 will hope the result echoes their most recent clash in New York, as opposed to their two opening encounters of 2023.

Noticed anything different about Jannik Sinner's serve lately?

The Italian introduced a new service motion midway through the season and he hasn't looked back, running up incredible service numbers captured by TDI Insights data.

His serve has underpinned his first two victories at the Nitto ATP Finals, where he won 89 per cent of points on his first serve in a 6-4, 6-4 win over Stefanos Tsitsipas, and then 79 per cent of first serves against arguably the game's greatest-ever returner, Novak Djokovic, in a three-set thriller.

“He retooled the serve with Darren [Cahill] and that's something very, very difficult to do,” former World No. 4 Greg Rusedski told ATPTour.com this week.

“I've been super impressed; the whole team has done a fantastic job with him. And it all started with making a change to the serve, the body, transitioning, adding slice and adding things. They're still not 100 per cent natural, but they're only going to get better with time because he's one of those guys who is going to put in the work."

Novak Djokovic led the Green Group at the Nitto ATP Finals as the top seed. But by the end of Thursday, the Serbian could be eliminated while 22-year-old Jannik Sinner and 20-year-old Holger Rune advance.

Djokovic had nothing but praise for his younger rivals after defeating Hubert Hurkacz to move to 2-1 at the season finale.

“The field is strong. I mean, the generation of Alcaraz, Rune, Sinner is very strong. It's probably the three players that will carry this sport in the future but also in the present because they are right at the top of the game, all of them,” Djokovic said. “Of course, it's expected for young players to be hungry, to be motivated, and to constantly look for ways to improve, get stronger, faster, better, so they can beat the best players in the world, and clinch some [of the] biggest trophies in the game.”

If Sinner defeats Rune on Thursday evening, Djokovic will qualify second in the group and advance to the semi-finals. If Rune wins, Djokovic will miss his chance of earning a record seventh Nitto ATP Finals title. What kind of a battle does he expect?

“I don't know. I don't know what Jannik is thinking about. Obviously knowing he has qualified even before he enters the court, I think it's a big relief. Knowing him, he's going to try to win every match that he plays. He's playing great. Rune, on the other hand, is playing great, too,” Djokovic said. “It will be an interesting matchup because they are the same generation, more or less. They are big rivals. I think that's the kind of rivalries we're going to see in the future. I'm sure they don't want to lose against each other in any event, particularly this big.”

Six-time Nitto ATP Finals champion Novak Djokovic boosted his chances of qualifying for the Turin semi-finals Thursday when he recovered from a second-set slump to down alternate Hubert Hurkacz 7-6(1), 4-6, 6-1.

Djokovic, who moves to 2-1 in Green Group, now awaits the outcome between Holger Rune and Jannik Sinner to learn if he’s advanced to the last four at the prestigious year-end event.

Aiming for a 12th semi-final berth in 16 Nitto ATP Finals appearances, Djokovic manoeuvred through a heavy-hitting, first-strike clash with Hurkacz, whom the Serbian now holds a 7-0 Lexus ATPHead2Head record against. Both players fought for court positioning, hugging the baseline tight behind their serves throughout the two-hour, four-minute encounter.

In crucial moments, Djokovic struck the ball cleanly while drawing unforced errors from Hurkacz’s forehand, such as at the end of the opening set, when the World No. 1 won 10 consecutive points from 6-5 to 6/0 in the tie-break.

Djokovic was forced to recover from a second-set dip, in which he was broken to love at 2-2 while Hurkacz won 13 consecutive points and did not drop a point behind his first serve in the entire second set.

Novak Djokovic clinched a record-extending eighth ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by Pepperstone finish on Sunday. But Year-End ATP Doubles No. 1 presented by Pepperstone is very much still up for grabs with only four days of the season left.

Five teams can still earn the honour: Ivan Dodig/Austin Krajicek, Wesley Koolhof/Neal Skupski, Rohan Bopanna/Matthew Ebden, Santiago Gonzalez/Edouard Roger-Vasselin and Marcel Granollers/Horacio Zeballos.

One year ago, Koolhof and Skupski earned the accolade. They still have a chance to repeat the feat, but are focused on advancing through Red Group at the Nitto ATP Finals first, according to Skupski.

“It’s unique that five teams can still finish the year as World No. 1,” Skupski said. “We are just focusing on our next match and not looking too far ahead. If we can take care of business on our side and stay in the moment, then the end of year No. 1 ranking will not be too far away.”

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Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin advanced to the semi-finals at the Nitto ATP Finals on Thursday when they saved one match point to overcome Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek 6-4, 3-6, 15-13 in a Green Group qualification shootout thriller.

The fourth seeds finish the round-robin stage holding a 2-1 record and join Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos (2-0) in the last four. Top seeds Dodig and Krajicek end Green Group play at 1-2 and are eliminated alongside Andres Molteni and Maximo Gonzalez (0-2).

In a tight match inside the Pala Alpitour, Gonzalez and Roger-Vasselin lifted their level in the Match Tie-break. After failing to convert match point chances at 9/8, 10/9 and 11/10, they then saved one match point at 11/12, before eventually converting on their fifth match point to triumph after one hour and 40 minutes.

Gonzalez and Roger-Vasselin dropped to their knees after advancing before they returned to their feet to embrace those in their box.

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The Green Group action climaxes on Thursday at the Nitto ATP Finals, with both qualification spots for the semi-finals still up for grabs.

Novak Djokovic will bid to bounce back from a defeat to Jannik Sinner, knowing a win against alternate Hubert Hurkacz would go a long way towards extending his Turin title defence beyond round-robin play. In the evening matchup, two of the ATP Tour's brightest young stars in Jannik Sinner and Holger Rune will square off under the lights.

[1] Novak Djokovic (SER) vs. [9/Alt] Hubert Hurkacz (POL)

Djokovic was turned back by home favourite Sinner in a thrilling three-setter on Tuesday night, but the Serbian left the match proud of his efforts.

"It's normal to lose some of the matches like this, but I have to be content with the fight, the fighting spirit," he said after seeing his 19-match winning streak snapped. "I managed to make a comeback from a set down, a break down in the third set, playing in really challenging and difficult conditions on the court today. I'm proud of the fight that I put in. It just wasn't enough for the win."

[SWEEPSTAKES]