The ATP Finals is slowly approaching the business end of the tournament, with the final phase of round-robin matches already underway in Turin.
Group Jimmy Connors comes to its conclusion on Thursday, before Group Bjorn Borg ends on Friday with Jannik Sinner facing Ben Shelton, and Alexander Zverev taking on Felix Auger-Aliassime.
Compared to Thursday’s scenarios, the permutations for Friday’s action are much simpler to understand; here, we look at what is at stake for all four men inside the Inalpi Arena.
What’s at stake between Sinner and Shelton?
Sinner’s first two matches at the ATP Finals have been primetime night session matches in Turin, though his final round-robin match against Shelton has been moved to the daytime slot.
There is one very simple reason for that: in terms of qualifying, there is nothing at stake in this match.
Having already beaten Auger-Aliassime and Zverev in Turin, Sinner is already guaranteed to finish atop Group Bjorn Borg, regardless of his result here.
While, having tasted defeat to both the German and Canadian on his ATP Finals debut, Shelton cannot qualify for the semi-final stage.
It would be easy to describe this match as a ‘dead rubber’, though there is still significant prize money and ranking points at stake for both men.
Tennis News
Alexander Zverev shuts down Jannik Sinner ‘unplayable’ question after ATP Finals loss
Ben Shelton’s ‘tactical weakness’ questioned after difficult ATP Finals defeats
Each round-robin win in Turin is worth both 200 ranking points and a staggering $396,500 in winnings, ensuring that both men still have plenty to play for, regardless of the lack of ramifications.
Sinner will enter this contest as an overwhelming favourite for victory, having won his last seven matches — and last 17 sets — against the American.
What’s at stake between Zverev and Auger-Aliassime?
With Sinner already guaranteed to progress as the group winner, and Shelton already out of contention, Zverev and Auger-Aliassime have clear scenarios in their encounter.
Whoever wins this match will qualify in second place and face the winner of Group Jimmy Connors in the semi-final, while whoever loses will exit the tournament.
Both men have picked up wins over Shelton and tasted defeats to Sinner at the ATP Finals this year, leading to a straight shootout between the two.
Zverev holds a 6-3 advantage in their head-to-head, though it was Auger-Aliassime who won their most recent meeting — defeating the German at the US Open this summer.
This will be the final round-robin match of the tournament, with the semi-finals taking place on Saturday, and the final on Sunday.
Order of play (Friday, November 14 – local time)
n/b 14:00: (1) Jannik Sinner vs (5) Ben Shelton
n/b 20:30: (3) Alexander Zverev vs (8) Felix Auger-Aliassime
Read Next: Jannik Sinner seals prize money breakthrough as he extends incredible winning run at ATP Finals
