Dominic Thiem and Stefanos Tsitsipas are contesting the first set of the title match at the Nitto ATP Finals on Sunday evening.

Tsitsipas came close to the first breakthrough, but Thiem came up with a powerful backhand at 1-2, 30/40. As rallies began to get drawn out, Thiem began to make inroads, but Tsitsipas – who saved 11 of 12 break points in his semi-final win over Roger Federer on Saturday – held firm in the seventh game, saving two break points with gutsy net play for a 4-3 advantage.

The 21-year-old Tsitsipas is the youngest tournament finalist since Juan Martin del Potro (21) in 2009 (l. to Davydenko) and the youngest player to make his debut and reach the final since Jim Courier (21) in 1991 (l. to Sampras). Thiem is guaranteed to finish a year-end best No. 4 in the ATP Rankings.

Infosys ATP Scores & Stats Comparison (Bold=Tournament Leader)

After squandering a championship point in last year’s Nitto ATP Finals, the pure joy on the faces of Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut was palpable as they walked off centre court at The O2 as champions in London.

Friends and family gathered in the locker room and waited for the Frenchmen to arrive. The vast entourage surpassed the number of champagne glasses available for everyone. When Herbert and Mahut entered, the group cheered in unison as the champions raised their fists in triumph.

Mahut leapt into the arms of his coach and Herbert kissed his fiancée, Julia. The champagne flowed freely as they gave toasts thanking their loved one for supporting them throughout the year, with each speech earning a rousing reception. Having suffered painful defeats in each of their past three appearances at The O2, they were eager to make the most of their celebration.

“We’ve been through a lot of emotions on this court. The first three years were catastrophic,” said Herbert. “Last year, one point was missing. Now we’ve managed to win it, so it’s just amazing.”

Prevailing at the season finale was particularly meaningful because it wasn’t a guarantee that the Frenchmen would be back. After winning the Australian Open in January (d. Kontinen/Peers) and becoming the eighth men’s doubles team to complete the career Grand Slam, Herbert shifted his focus to singles. They only teamed up five more times leading into the Rolex Paris Masters in October, posting a 4-5 record.

But after Roland Garros champions Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies clinched their spot in the season-ending championships, Herbert and Mahut qualified in accordance to the Grand Slam rule. Buoyed by earning their fifth successive appearance at The O2, the Frenchmen found their groove and took the title in Paris without dropping a set (d. Khachanov/Rublev).

They matched that effort in London by winning another five matches without dropping a set, becoming the first team to achieve the feat since Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau in 2015.

“It’s an amazing feeling. Last year was a little bit painful,” Mahut admitted. “The first goal was to qualify and the second goal was to go through to the end. We played an amazing week and the final was our best match.

”It’s a privilege. We had a tough year, but we came back stronger, so it’s a nice way to finish the season.”

Herbert vowed that their end-of-season reunion wasn’t a mere nostalgia moment. The Frenchmen will team up again next season and already have an eye on defending their title at The O2.

“We’re going to play, for sure!” Herbert said. “We’re going to try to be as competitive as we were this week. That’s the goal.”

One year ago, Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut came within one point of lifting the Nitto ATP Finals trophy for the first time. When presented with a second chance on Sunday, the Frenchmen finally claimed the crown at The O2 with a 6-3, 6-4 victory against Raven Klaasen and Michael Venus.

“It is pretty special [to win this trophy]. Maybe, for doubles, it is one of the toughest tournaments to win,” said Herbert. “After our story in London — we had three really tough years and last year we had a match point in the final — being able to win here is an amazing feeling.”

The seventh seeds notched their ninth straight victory to lift the trophy after 70 minutes, saving all four break points they faced. Mahut and Herbert have won all 18 sets they have contested since arriving at the Rolex Paris Masters last month. The career Grand Slam winners are the first team to lift the trophy at The O2 without dropping a set since Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau in 2015.

“We had a great week in Bercy and we really played well in the group stage,” said Mahut. “The final was maybe the best match we played during the week. It is fantastic to finish with this high-quality tennis.”

2018: ?
2019: ?
@p2hugz & @nmahut have won the #NittoATPFinals without dropping a set!

?: @TennisTV pic.twitter.com/ANrwxqG2un

— ATP Tour (@atptour) November 17, 2019

Herbert and Mahut become the first French team to capture the season-ending crown since Michael Llodra and Fabrice Santoro, who triumphed in 2005 in Shanghai. This is their 15th tour-level trophy as a team, adding to 2019 crowns at the Australian Open and Rolex Paris Masters. With their Australian Open trophy in January, Herbert and Mahut became only the eighth men’s doubles team to complete the career Grand Slam.

“Thank you for sharing the court with me, for having so much enjoyable moments and giving me so much joy when I am with you on the court,” said Herbert, on playing with Mahut. “You played an unbelievable final, so thank you for that.”

With their 10th victory in 18 matches at this event, Herbert and Mahut improve to 19-5 this season. The Frenchmen collect 1,500 ATP Doubles Rankings points for their unbeaten title run in London and share $533,000 in prize money.

The Frenchmen broke for a 3-1 lead in the first set, as Herbert attacked Klaasen with a series of low backhands to extract errors from the 37-year-old. The seventh seeds maintained their advantage through to 5-3, when Herbert fired an ace out wide to clinch the opener after 33 minutes.

After Mahut saved break point at 2-3 in the second set with a powerful body serve, the Frenchmen made their move in the following game. In the first two points, both players fired return winners before Klaasen double-faulted to concede the break. Mahut used a familiar serving tactic on championship point, firing into the body of Venus to clinch the title.

“Thank you Julia for saying yes!” ?@p2hugz announces on court he and his girlfriend Julia will be getting married ❤

?: @TennisTV #NittoATPFinals pic.twitter.com/WuaCCLlPOm

— ATP Tour (@atptour) November 17, 2019

Two-time Nitto ATP Finals champion Max Mirnyi carried the trophy on court for the doubles trophy presentation ceremony. The Belarusian had the honour, alongside Jonas Bjorkman, of having one of two round-robin groups named after him at this year’s event. Mirnyi was joined on court by ATP Executive Chairman and President Chris Kermode, Nitto ATP Finals Event Director Adam Hogg, AEG Europe President and CEO Alex Hill and Nitto President, CEO and COO Hideo Takasaki.

“We won the Max Mirnyi group and today we won the final in front of you, Max, so it is a priviledge,” said Mahut. “You are such a legend and we are really happy to win in front of you. Thank you, Max, for coming.”

After saving two match points in their semi-final win against Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, Klaasen and Venus were attempting to capture their third title of the year. The fifth seeds lifted ATP 500 trophies in Halle and Washington, D.C and also reached finals in Auckland and Rome. Klaasen and Venus leave London with 800 ATP Doubles Rankings points and will split $289,000.

Ridiculous angle from Michael Venus ?

Watch finals day at the #NittoATPFinals on @TennisTV. pic.twitter.com/3x2XPczoz8

— ATP Tour (@atptour) November 17, 2019

The top eight players in the ATP Race to London are rewarded by competing at the Nitto ATP Finals, but several other ATP Tour players received their own reward this week in the same city.

A group of 14 players graduated from ATP University on Wednesday after completing a three-day course designed to give them the skills to succeed on Tour. The educational session is held twice per year and offers a range of presentations covering topics including savings and investments, media training, social media and anti-doping. An ATP IQ competition testing players on their knowledge from the course was held on the final day, with Slovak Andrej Martin prevailing and Pole Kamil Majchrzak finishing in second.

“I have really enjoyed the time with the other players and the ATP. It was a great three days,” said Majchrzak. “I could refresh the knowledge that I have and learn a few new things, so it was very useful. I especially loved the presentation from the Winston-Salem Open tournament director [Bill Oakes].”

Over 1,000 past and present ATP Tour players have graduated from the program. Any player in his first year of ATP World Tour Division I membership is required to attend ATP University. Players inside the Top 200 of the ATP Rankings and Top 100 of the ATP Doubles Rankings are eligible for the membership.

The participants ranged in age from 19 (Rudolf Molleker) to 31 (Pedro Sousa). But regardless of whether they were new to the Tour or established players, there were insights for everyone to gain.

“It’s a recognition of getting somewhere with your tennis. You’re playing at a similar level and there are benefits to that membership, but also responsibilities that come with the life on Tour,” said Diego Pedraza Novak, Coordinator, Player Communications. “Whether you’re new on Tour or older and just getting [the membership] now, it’s a unifying thing.”

The highlight for many players in attendance was Carlos Moya, former World No. 1 and current coach of Rafael Nadal, kicking off the session on Monday. Moya spoke about his time on Tour and what it’s like to work with the 19-time Grand Slam champion.

“Just to get some insight into what [Nadal] is doing post-match, before the match, after getting to the final of a Grand Slam… You begin to think that these are things we should be picking up and putting into our routines as well,” said South African Lloyd Harris. “It’s small things from different categories that you can pick up and use.”

But it wasn’t all lectures and presentations during the three days. The players also made their way to The O2 on Tuesday night to take in the action at the season-ending championships.

“It was pretty fun. I enjoyed it and had three good days there,” said Pole Hubert Hurkacz. “I had a chance to learn many things about tennis and the ATP. I’ll remember it as being quite important and fun.”

The London 2019 graduates included Harris, Hurkacz, Majchrzak, Molleker, Sousa, Martin Roberto Quiroz, Jurij Rodionov, Thai-Son Kwiatkowski, Constant Lestienne, Lorenzo Giustino, Soonwoo Kwon and Cheng-Peng Hsieh.

Dominic Thiem and Stefanos Tsitsipas, who will play on Sunday for the Nitto ATP Finals title, have already competed six times in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series (Thiem leads 4-2) and been Laver Cup teammates for Team Europe.

But their relationship began in 2016 in a much more nondescript place – a practice court at The O2. Thiem was making his debut at the Nitto ATP Finals, and Tsitsipas was a baby-faced practice partner, wide-eyed and in awe of the top players on the ATP Tour.

If Tsitsipas thought then, at the age of 18, that he’d be playing in the season finale title match only three years later, that would make him the only 2019 finalist who had such confidence.

“It’s amazing story for both of us, because probably both of us, we didn’t think that only three years later we were going to face each other in the final,” Thiem said.

“A little bit more and I’ll end up playing with all the players from the ATP World Tour Finals.”

This was @StefTsitsipas in 2016 as a hitting partner for @ThiemDomi.

Tomorrow, the two will face off in this year’s final ?

?: Stefanos Tsitsipas (IG) | #NittoATPFinals pic.twitter.com/kJCv3nyxQr

— ATP Tour (@atptour) November 16, 2019

The Austrian secured his place in his first Nitto ATP Finals title match with a 7-5, 6-3 win against defending champion Alexander Zverev on Saturday evening. Tsitsipas beat six-time champion Roger Federer 6-3, 6-4 earlier on Saturday.

“He really deserves it. He’s a good person. He’s a very good player with a very attractive style to watch, so it’s good to have him,” Thiem said of Tsitsipas. “We have a great time outside the court. But once we take the step on the court, it’s a battle and we forget for two, three hours, our friendships.”

The 26-year-old paid attention to Tsitsipas’ level during their practice and was even more impressed last year when they played on the ATP Tour for the first time.

“There I saw and I also felt his amazing potential. Then at the end of the year [2018], already he was No. 14 or 15, and then everybody could see where his direction goes, only up, only in absolute world class,” Thiem said.

Winning the Nitto ATP Finals title would be the biggest title for either player, and it also would mark a drastic improvement from where each of them finished the season 12 months ago.

Thiem finished 1-2 in group play and did not advance to the semi-finals at the season finale for the third consecutive year. Tsitsipas won the 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan (d. De Minaur).

In fact, before this season, Thiem had won 11 titles but only two on hard court. This year, however, Thiem has won five titles, including three on hard court, and he could add his biggest yet on Sunday.

“I made some little changes through the year, like my forehand, I shortened up the swing a little bit, which helps me, especially on the faster surfaces. And then I also made some little changes at serve and then return,” Thiem said.

“I really hope that I can continue my great level of tennis in 2020, and now I have the feeling that my game is really moving in the right direction.”

Alexander Zverev finished the 2018 season with a bang, winning the biggest title of his career at the Nitto ATP Finals. That helped the German finish at year-end World No. 4.

Even though he was unable to maintain that momentum in 2019, Zverev managed to qualify for the season finale for the third consecutive year, and he showed some of his best tennis — including a straight-sets win against World No. 1 Rafael Nadal — to reach the semifinals in London. He closes out the campaign at World No. 7.

“To finish the year No. 7 in the world, for me, with all the things that happened to me and with all the things that were happening is actually quite incredible. I didn’t think I would. In that point, you can see it in a very positive way,” Zverev said. “Of course, I was very disappointed, because I wanted to win more tournaments. I wanted to play better at the big tournaments.”

Zverev triumphed in Geneva this year for his 11th ATP Tour trophy, and finishes the season with a 44-25 record. It is the fourth straight year in which he has eclipsed the 40-win mark.

“After the US Open I started playing much, much better. I hope I can take that into next season, and we will see,” said Zverev, who made the semi-finals of the China Open and then the championship match of the Rolex Shanghai Masters following a fourth-round showing in Flushing Meadows.

Zverev entered his clash against Dominic Thiem on Saturday with plenty of confidence following a must-win match that he triumphed in on Friday against Daniil Medvedev. But he was unable to find the same level against the Austrian star, who advanced to his first final at this event.

“The match was, I thought, pretty even. Dominic obviously played very good from the baseline,” Zverev said. “But today I was playing with no returns, actually. I was returning really bad and didn’t put a lot of pressure on his serve. And when I did, he was coming out with good serves, good points. Credit to him. I played a bad game in the second set, and that match was over a few games later.”

Zverev was one of four 23-and-under players to compete at The O2 this week. Two of those four (Zverev and Tsitsipas) made the semi-finals, and the German believes there will be more success for the sport’s rising stars in 2020.

“I think next year will bring a new Grand Slam champion. We’ll see who that will be, because I think the young guys are playing incredible tennis,” Zverev said. “It can be Daniil, it can be Stefanos, it can be Dominic. I’m in the mix, as well, I hope. We’ll see what next year brings. But I think for the young guys, it’s going to be an exciting year.”