For Jannik Sinner, the road is uphill

For Jannik Sinner, the road is uphill

The Nitto ATP Finals are just under a month and a half away, and there are still four spots left to fill to complete the batch of eight singles finalists. This week’s two ATP 500s in Nur-Sultan and Tokyo may direct the race to Turin, where the top eight doubles players and pairs will be on stage Nov. 13-20 at the Pala Alpitour.

Already qualified are Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz and Rafa Nadal, Norway’s Casper Ruud, and Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas, who occupy the top four spots in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, the ranking based on seasonal results from which the eight qualifiers for the Finals at the Pala Alpitour will emerge.

The fight for the last useful positions involves Russians Daniil Medvedev (fifth) and Andrey Rublev (sixth), and Canadian Félix Auger-Aliassime (seventh), who is only 225 points ahead of Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz (ninth): all four will be in the field at the Astana Open. The condition of Alexander Zverev, eighth, is to be assessed.

Peculiar is the situation of Novak Djokovic, 15th and fresh off his third title of the season in Tel Aviv. The Serb, winner at Wimbledon, knows he needs to finish in the Top 20 in the Race to be in Turin and chase a sixth title at the Nitto ATP Finals.

Jannik Sinner’s road becomes increasingly uphill. The South Tyrolean is currently number 12 in the Race and has yes reduced his delay from the first useful position but Sofia’s double stop – injury and withdrawal in the semifinals against Holger Rune and consequent forfeit in Nur-Sultan – represent a bad blow. The other Italian theoretically still in the running, Matteo Berrettini, will not play this week either: the number 14 ranking will make his competitive return only in the ATP 250 in Florence, Italy, which begins on October 10.