Alcaraz, Rublev Eager To Make Most Of Second Chance In Turin
The Red Group returns to the court on Wednesday at the Nitto ATP Finals, where Carlos Alcaraz and Andrey Rublev will meet in the afternoon followed by an evening installment of the long-running Daniil Medvedev vs. Alexander Zverev rivalry.
It will be a maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting between Alcaraz and Rublev, who will both seek to bounce back from opening defeats in Turin. In contrast, familiar foes Medvedev and Zverev contest their 18th tour-level meeting, with the winner set to improve to 2-0 in the group stage.
[2] Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) vs. [5] Andrey Rublev
Making his debut at the Nitto ATP FInals, Alcaraz won the opening set against Zverev but the German ultimately prevailed 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-4. It was the Spaniard's third defeat in a row — but unlike after the previous two, he still has a chance to make amends in Turin.
“It’s the only tournament where a loss does not knock you out,” Alcaraz said on Monday. “I still have a chance to continue improving and to get through the group stage. Tomorrow I’ll practise to improve everything that I didn’t do well today, which is a lot."
Specifically, Alcaraz was unhappy with his consistency in the quick conditions at the Pala Alpitour. Rublev looked right at home on the slick surface early in his matchup against Daniil Medvedev, but a few loose errors at key points — and seven break-point saves by the World No. 3 late in the opening set — shifted the match decisively in Medvedev's favour.
"The feeling was that as soon as we had a rally, I was playing well and I had great chances," Rublev said, before noting the crucial mistakes that cost him.
Before the tournament, Rublev compared the styles of Alcaraz and Medvedev: "If Alcaraz is killing you fast, and sometimes you don't notice, Medvedev is killing you slowly," he joked, referencing the third seed's methodical game.
While Rublev has played Medvedev nine times, Monday's matchup with Alcaraz will be the pair's first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting.
[SWEEPSTAKES]
[3] Daniil Medvedev vs. [7] Alexander Zverev (GER)
Zverev's comeback win against Alcaraz was an upset according to their seeds, but Medvedev was not surprised by the result.
"In the end it turned out to be a great fight and a great match. No surprises," he said. "Sascha can play well also, serve well. It's going to be interesting to play him for the 18th time."
Medvedvev is more familiar with the German's game than most: Of their 17 previous Lexus ATP Head2Head matches, five have come this season. Medvedev won four of them and leads the overall rivalry 10-7.
Their matchups have typically come on the ATP Tour's biggest stages. They have met nine times at ATP Masters 1000s and four times at the Nitto ATP Finals — including twice in 2021, when Medvedev won in the group stage but Zverev gained revenge in the final. The German also won the Nitto ATP Finals crown in 2018, while Medvedev triumphed in 2020, beating Zverev in the group stage en route to the title.
With both players entering this high-stakes meeting at 1-0 in the Red Group, the winner here will take command in first place.
Defending Champs Ram/Salisbury Face Koolhof/Skupski Rematch
In last year's Nitto ATP Finals doubles semis, Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury defeated Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski on the way to the title. The teams were seeded second and first, respectively, last year and now meet again as the sixth and third seeds in Turin. Both made strong starts in their bids to return to the knockout rounds with opening wins on Monday.
Wednesday's second doubles matchup will see third seeds Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden face Aussie eighth seeds Rinky Hijikata and Jason Kubler. Both teams are seeking their first win of the tournament.