ATP Finals 2021: Men’s Singles Group analysis, preview and prediction

The last event of the season, the ATP Finals will be held in Turin for the first time and will commence from November 14. Novak Djokovic is seeded first while defending champion Daniil Medvedev is the second seed.

Tournament Details:

• Tournament: ATP Finals 2021
• Date: November 14- November 21, 2021
• Number of Entrants: 8 (Singles), 8 (Doubles)
• Venue: Turin, Italy
• Surface: Indoor Hard Court
• Prize Money: $7,250,000
• Defending champion: Daniil Medvedev

Players competing at ATP Finals

• Novak Djokovic
• Daniil Medvedev
• Alexander Zverev
• Stefanos Tsitsipas
• Andrey Rublev
• Matteo Berrettini
• Hubert Hurkacz
• Casper Ruud

Group Preview and Prediction

Green Group

World No.1 and tournament favorite, Novak Djokovic headlines the Green group. The 20-time grand slam champion won the Australian Open at the start of the season and had an exceptional clay court season, where he defeated the Rafael Nadal enroute his second triumph at Roland Garros. He then his 20th major at Wimbledon and was just a match away from completing a historic calendar slam at Flushing Meadows where he lost to Daniil Medvedev. He also won the Paris Masters a week ago.

Stefanos Tsitsipas had an amazing first half of the season. He made it to the semifinal of the Australian Open and was the best clay court player of the season where he won the Monte Carlo Masters and Lyon Open. He was also just a set away from winning his maiden major at Roland Garros. In the North American swing, he made back-to-back semifinals at Toronto and Cincinnati before reaching the quarterfinals at Indian Wells.

Russian Andrey Rublev too had a very good first half of the season. He won the ATP Cup with Russia and reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. He then won at Rotterdam before making it to the semifinals at Qatar, Dubai and Miami. He also finished runner-up at Monte Carlo and had quarterfinal outings at Barcelona and Rome. He then reached the final of the Cincinnati Masters before bowing out in the third round at New York.

Casper Ruud has been one of the most successful player this season. After bowing out of the first round at Wimbledon, he won three consecutive titles- the Swedish Open, the Swiss Open and the Austrian Open. He then reached the quarterfinals at both Toronto and Cincinnati Masters. After a poor outing at Flushing Meadows, he won the San Diego Open beating Cameron Norrie in the final. He also made it to the quarterfinal at Vienna and Bercy.

Predicted semifinalists: Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas

Red Group

World No.2 Daniil Medvedev headlines the red group and has had a phenomenal season. He made it to the final of the Australian Open and won his maiden major at Flushing Meadows. He also won the Toronto Masters and reached the semifinal of the Cincinnati Masters. He finished runner-up at Bercy and will fancy his chances to defend his title at the year end finals.

Making it to the semifinals from this group is a lot difficult than the first but Alexander Zverev will be one of the players to beat. He has probably been the most consistent player this season after Novak Djokovic. He has reached three grand slam semifinals this season and also won the Gold medal at Tokyo Olympics. He won his second masters title of the season at Cincinnati and then reached the semifinal of the US Open after a Round of 16 exit at Wimbledon. He then won the title at Vienna before making it to the semifinals at Bercy.

Italian Matteo Berrettini has played to his potential this season. He has shown tremendous power hitting and was the most successful player on grass this season. He won at Queen’s Club and reached the final at Wimbledon. He then had a quarterfinal outing at US Open where he lost to Djokovic once again.

Polish sensation Hubert Hurkacz stunned the world by winning the Miami Masters earlier this year. He then had a terrible clay court season before making it to the semifinal at Wimbledon where he defeated Roger Federer in the last 8. He also won the Moselle Open and made it to the semifinal at Bercy.

Predicted semifinalists: Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev

Semifinals

The first semifinal will be between Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev. Both the players have produced some of the best matches this year when playing against each other- be it the the Tokyo Olympics semifinal or the US Open semifinal. Expect another blockbuster semifinal outing with Djokovic edging past Zverev.

Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas will meet in the second semifinal. The two have shared some bitter moments on the court before and hence have a good rivalry. Medvedev will start favorite given Tsitsipas’ recent form.

Predicted final: Novak Djokovic vs Daniil Medvedev

Final

The two best players in the world, Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev will play the last match of the season. Rightly so, it will be a closely contested match. Medvedev will look to defend his title and will want to avenge his defeat from Bercy, Meanwhile Djokovic, who clearly has been the best player this season will want to end this memorable year on a high.

Champion: Novak Djokovic

Also read: WTA Finals 2021: Women’s Singles Group analysis, preview and prediction