It’s that time of the year again when the attention of the tennis world begins to focus on who will qualify for Nitto ATP Finals. Only this season’s best eight singles players and doubles teams will compete at the world’s biggest indoor tennis event, to be held at The O2 in London from 10-17 November.

Players earn their place at the season finale by finishing in the Top 8 of the ATP Race To London on 4 November, when the ATP Tour regular season concludes after the Rolex Paris Masters. The Race is a calendar-year points race that starts at the beginning of each ATP Tour season. 

Throughout the season a player adds his best eligible results from up to 18 tournaments to his Race points tally. Winning a prestigious ATP Masters 1000 title earns the champion 1000 points. Titles at ATP 500 and 250-level tournaments return 500 points and 250 points, respectively. Players who don’t win the title still earn points based on how far they advance in the draw.

The Race differs from the ATP Rankings, the historical world rankings. A player’s ranking is determined by his best 18 tournament results over the preceding 52 weeks. A high ranking is needed to get into the world’s best tournaments and rankings also determine if a player is seeded. Novak Djokovic is known as the World No. 1 because he sits atop the Rankings. Daniil Medvedev is known as a Top 10 player because he is No. 4 in the Rankings.

More often than not, a player’s Race standing is different to his ranking. For example, Rafael Nadal is first in the Race but second in the Rankings because he has enjoyed more success in 2019 — with two Grand Slam and two ATP Masters 1000 titles — than over the longer time period of the past 52 weeks. Nadal concluded his 2018 season early due to injury, following a semi-final run at the US Open.

In the latter part of the season, a player’s focus turns to his position in the Race because it becomes an accurate predictor of what the player’s year-end ranking will be. And, of course, the Race determines who makes it to London.

Djokovic, Nadal, Roger Federer and Medvedev are the four players who have already booked their spots at The O2. In doubles, one team – Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah – has booked its spots.

As Sunday evening turned into Monday morning in Russia, the two Russian men who have won a Grand Slam singles title had their eyes glued to their respective televisions. Both former World No. 1s, Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Marat Safin were texting one another as their countryman, Daniil Medvedev, took the tennis world on a roller-coaster ride in the US Open final. The 23-year-old battled from two sets and a break down to force a fifth set against Rafael Nadal before ultimately succumbing after nearly five hours in an epic clash against the Spaniard, who is now a 19-time Slam titlist.

“We exchanged text messages saying, ‘It could be an easy three sets’ after he lost the first set. But then after the third, we started thinking, ‘Wow, this is going to be interesting!’” Kafelnikov told ATPTour.com. “And of course, especially in the beginning of the fifth set, we said, ‘He’s going to win it!’ because he had total control of the match in the beginning of the fifth set.”

A loss is a loss, but it didn’t feel like one for Medvedev. Not only did he come full circle with the crowd, which gave him an applause to remember during his post-match speech, but the Russian proved that he can go blow-for-blow under a lot of pressure against an all-time great.

“To turn it around from having lost the match and to turn it around to almost winning the match and to end up losing, it’s a bummer. But at the end of the day, it’s absolutely a victory,” Kafelnikov said. “He gained experience, I’m sure. I was hoping it was not going to be the last time he was going to participate in a Grand Slam final, but after what I saw yesterday, I’m absolutely sure he’s going to have his chances many, many times more.”

Before arriving in Flushing Meadows, Medvedev had never advanced past the fourth round of a major. But riding the form of a tremendous North American summer hard-court swing in which he reached the final in Washington and Montreal before triumphing in Cincinnati, the new World No. 4 kept his level up to put forth another great showing, this time in New York.

“That’s another huge step forward for Daniil. At 23 we had not seen him get past the fourth round. This tournament he showed, ‘Okay, I’m going to be a contender for a very long time now in the Grand Slams,’” Kafelnikov said. “Daniil believes now he can be a contender every time he steps on the court in the Slams. That kind of confidence is very important for every player.”

And as the 2017 Next Gen ATP Finals qualifier said after his loss, he had no fear after the past couple of months, and he thought Nadal was the player with something to lose. Medvedev also defeated three-time Slam champion Stan Wawrinka in the quarters and ousted 2017 Nitto ATP Finals winner Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets in the semi-finals.

“Right now it’s obvious that he has another gear when he plays against [top] opponents, whom he is capable of beating. He showed it against Djokovic this summer and he showed it yesterday against Rafa, that he can bring it up a gear, he can raise his game to another level, which I was not able to see before,” Kafelnikov said. “This is a sign of a player who has matured, who has gotten better. He belongs to the Top 5 at the moment for sure.”

According to the new International Tennis Hall of Famer, it wasn’t that Medvedev did not have the game to finish off the Spaniard inside Arthur Ashe Stadium; he earned three break points to go up 2-0 in the decider. It was that Nadal brought certain intangibles to the court that the Russian had not yet earned.

“We all know that Rafa is a fighter. Every time he smells [a chance he is] like, ‘Okay, this is my chance’, he always takes the opportunity and after he got back into the match at 1-1 in the fifth set, he just said, ‘Okay, I’m not going to let the title go,’” Kafelnikov said. “From that point on I think what played a huge role in the fifth set is experience. Rafa was definitely more experienced than Daniil. At the end of the day, Daniil got what’s needed. He’s 23 years old, he will have many more opportunities in the future.”

Medvedev entered the match winless in four previous five-setters. But hanging in with the physicality of facing Nadal is an even tougher challenge. And although he lost, the fifth seed met that challenge and came ever so close to passing it.

“I was most impressed how he kept his physical condition to stay in the match for four and a half hours with Rafa,” Kafelnikov said. “In the past he showed that he was not physically capable of going the distance all the way, and yesterday I was really impressed that for four and a half hours he was battling against one of the toughest opponents of all time.”

They even broadcasted the match on one of Russia’s biggest television stations, and countless people back home watched as the five-time ATP Tour champion battled against the legendary lefty.

“I am very proud that he did fight, he did not give up after being two sets to love down and a break down in the third set. He has nothing to be ashamed of, he did as best as he could,” Kafelnikov said. “Everyone was watching from 11pm, midnight until four in the morning. Everyone was stuck to the TVs. We are really proud of what he did and what he gave us in terms of entertainment.”

Colombians Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah are firmly in control of the top spot in the ATP Doubles Race To London after claiming their second Grand Slam title of the season at the US Open. But with seven berths into the Nitto ATP Finals remaining, there is plenty at stake for the world’s best doubles teams.

Cabal and Farah won their second consecutive major on Friday, earning 2,000 points to move their total in the Race to 7,940, which is more than double the second-placed team of Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo (3,445). Last year, the Colombians qualified for the season finale for the first time, and now they are nearing their first finish atop the year-end ATP Rankings.

Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan, who have won 118 tour-level titles together, are in strong position to earn their 15th Nitto ATP Finals qualification as a team. They are in third place with 3,380 points, just five points ahead of Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies, the Roland Garros champions and US Open semi-finalists who seek their first trip to London. Only five points behind the Germans are 2018 qualifiers Raven Klaasen and Michael Venus, who are trying to make the season finale for the second consecutive year.

Typically, the Top 8 teams in the Race automatically qualify for the season finale in London, to be held at The O2 from 10-17 November. But that may not be the case this year.

Frenchmen Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut won the Australian Open, but they are in 11th place with 2,180 points, outside of the cut. If Krawietz and Mies do not fall from the Top 7 and the Frenchmen are outside the top 7, they will qualify based on the Grand Slam winner rule.

If both Krawietz/Mies and Herbert/Mahut do not make the Top 7 and are placed from No. 8-20 in the Race, then only the higher-placed team will make London as the Grand Slam winner rule applies to just one team.

Two pairs which have lifted the trophy at The O2 are currently positioned to return to London. Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau, the 2015 titlists, are in sixth place with 2,860 points, and two-time winners Henri Kontinen and John Peers are 40 points behind.

Currently rounding out the Top 8 is the first-year team of Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury, who have 2,570 points. The American-British duo was victorious in Dubai earlier this year and has reached two additional finals in 2019.

Entering the US Open, first-placed Rafael Nadal led Novak Djokovic by just 140 points in the ATP Race To London, representing the battle for year-end World No. 1. By claiming his fourth trophy in Flushing Meadows, Nadal has significantly increased his advantage.

The 19-time Grand Slam champion extended his lead to 1,960 points, putting himself in prime position to finish the season No. 1 for the fifth time in his career. If the Spaniard accomplishes the feat, he will join ‘Big Three’ rivals Djokovic and Roger Federer, as well as Jimmy Connors, in a tie for the second-most year-end No. 1 finishes. Pete Sampras holds the record of six year-end No. 1 finishes (achieved in consecutive years from 1993-1998).

“If I am able to be No. 1 doing [it] my way, great. But I always say the same: today it’s not my main goal. Of course, it’s great to be in that fight,” Nadal said. “But for me personally, it’s not really a fight. I just try be competitive the weeks that I need to compete, or the weeks that I want to compete… If I am able to play well until the end of the season, I’m going to have my chances. That going to be amazing.” 

Most Year-End No. 1 Finishes

View ATP Race To London Standings

The Race is nowhere near over, though, with two months remaining in the season and plenty of points up for grabs. Just last year, Djokovic claimed 2,600 points after the US Open. At the two remaining ATP Masters 1000 events — the Rolex Shanghai Masters and the Rolex Paris Masters — and the prestigious Nitto ATP Finals, a player can add as many as 3,500 points to their total.

Nadal finished as the year-end No. 1 player in 2008, 2010, 2013 and 2017. In the latter three, Nadal won the US Open. Each time he has triumphed a the US Open — in 2010, 2013 and 2017 — the Spaniard has gone on to finish the season atop the ATP Rankings.

Rafael Nadal has drawn level with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic on 54 ‘Big Titles’ each by capturing his fourth US Open title on Sunday.

The Spanish superstar was emotional at the end of his epic five-set victory over Daniil Medvedev at Flushing Meadows on Sunday night, when the big screen showed highlights of all of his 19 Grand Slam singles championship crowns — second only to all-time leader Federer (20).

Afterwards, Nadal admitted, “[To] see all the things [that] I went through, [to] be able to still be here is so special for me. I went through some tough moments, physically especially. When you have physical issues, then mentally things became much more difficult. The emotions have been there watching all the success, all the moments that came to my mind in that moment.”

More From The US Open
Nadal Claims Epic Five-Set Win For Fourth Title
Nadal: ‘This Trophy Means Everything To Me’
Nadal At Net: Rafa Finds A New Way To Win Title

Nadal’s fourth ‘Big Title’ of the 2019 season — Roland Garros (d. Thiem), the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome (d. Djokovic), the Coupe Rogers in Montreal (d. Medvedev) and the US Open — also draws him level with Djokovic for conversion rate in Grand Slam championships, Nitto ATP Finals or ATP Masters 1000 tournaments.

Incredibly, both Nadal and Djokovic have won 54 ‘Big Titles’ from 182 events for a conversion rate of 3.4. Federer, at 38 years of age, has also won 54 ‘Big Titles’ but played in more of these events (231) and has a conversion rate of 4.3.

Djokovic, who this week ties Jimmy Connors for third-most weeks all-time at No. 1 (268), has lifted three ‘Big Titles’ at the Australian Open (d. Nadal), the Mutua Madrid Open (d. Tsitsipas) and at Wimbledon (d. Federer). Federer, who lost to Grigor Dimitrov in the US Open quarter-finals, won his fourth crown at the Miami Open presented by Itau in March.

Current and Former Champions’ Big Titles Won (Records Since 1990)

* Becker’s four other Grand Slam titles came before 1990.
** Edberg’s three other Grand Slam titles came before 1990.
*** Chang’s one Grand Slam title came before 1990.

Matteo Berrettini has moved into contention for a spot at the Nitto ATP Finals, to be held at The O2 in London from 10-17 November, after a sensational run to the US Open semi-finals.

The Italian has vaulted from 17th position to ninth (2,160) in the 2019 ATP Race To London, only 20 points behind Kei Nishikori (2,180). The 23-year-old Berrettini has enjoyed a breakthrough year with two ATP Tour titles at the MercedesCup in Stuttgart (d. Auger-Aliassime) and the Hungarian Open in Budapest (d. Krajinovic).

Alexander Zverev will be working hard for a chance to defend his Nitto ATP Finals title, following a run to the US Open fourth round, but he still has work to do if he wishes to compete at the season finale.

The German star produced his best performance at Flushing Meadows in five appearances, losing out to Diego Schwartzman, and added 180 points to sit in 10th position. This season, the 22-year-old has won one ATP Tour title at the Banque Eric Sturdza Geneva Open (d. Jarry), finished runner-up at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC (l. to Kyrgios) and reached the Roland Garros quarter-finals for the second consecutive year.

Incredibly, there are four players — Berrettini (2,160 points), Zverev (2,120), David Goffin (2,080) and Gael Monfils (2,080) — are all within 100 points of eighth-placed Nishikori (2,180), who is just 170 points behind Roberto Bautista Agut in seventh position (2,350).

Additionally, first-round exits at Flushing Meadows for Stefanos Tsitsipas (sixth place) and Bautista Agut (seventh place), who are both bidding to qualify for the The O2 in London for the first time, have ensured that the final two months of the regular ATP Tour season will be fascinating.

View Latest ATP Race To London

US Open finalist Daniil Medvedev, who qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time on 4 September, ended the summer North American hard-court swing with a 20-3 match record, to move up one spot to fourth position (4,805). The Russian is now almost 1,000 points clear of fifth-placed Dominic Thiem (3,845), who lost in the first round in New York City and continues to fight for a place in London for the fourth consecutive year.

The battle for year-end No. 1 has also intensified after Rafael Nadal captured his fourth US Open crown, which marked the 19th major singles championship of his career. Nadal led Djokovic (7,265) by 140 points coming into the tournament, but the Spaniard has since pushed the gap to 1,960 points. Nadal, who will next compete at the Laver Cup and then the Rolex Shanghai Masters, finished year-end No. 1 in 2008, 2010, 2013 and 2017.

Want to win the 2019 US Open final? You better serve and volley.

Rafael Nadal defeated Daniil Medvedev 7-5, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 6-4 in four hours and 50 minutes, with a combined 49 serve-and-volley points naturally occurring from both players to counter each other’s ruthless baseline patterns of play.

When push came to shove in the deciding fifth set, Nadal served and volleyed seven times, winning six (86%) of those points. Overall, Nadal served and volleyed a jaw-dropping 20 times in the final, winning 17 (85%) points. When all seemed equal from the back of the court, the Spaniard cleverly decided to take the battle forward, and reaped the rewards of his aggressive net rushing tactics.

The following breakdown identifies just how dominant Nadal’s serve-and-volley strategy was in such a closely contested final.

Rafael Nadal: US Open Final Points Won
• Baseline Points Won = 47.0% (96/204)
• Net Points Won = 77.2% (51/66)
• Serve & Volley Points Won = 85% (17/20)

Nadal had only served and volleyed five times in five matches to the final, winning all of those points. With Medvedev consistently returning so many crushing baseline shots the Spaniard threw at him, it made perfect sense to move the battle forward to the front of the court to mine a critical advantage in the final.

How did Medvedev answer Nadal’s foray’s forward? By also dominating at the front of the court himself.

Daniil Medvedev: US Open Final Points Won
• Baseline Points Won = 39% (75/194)
• Net Points Won = 68% (50/74)
• Serve & Volley Points Won = 76% (22/29)

To the final, Medvedev only served and volleyed five times – all in the first three rounds – winning four of those points. He massively ratcheted up his aggression at the front of the court in the final against Nadal, winning 22 points serving and volleying against the Spaniard, including winning eight of 12 (67%) in the fifth set.

The average rally length in the final was 5.45 shots, which was the longest of any match Nadal played to the final.

Rafael Nadal: Average Rally Length
• Rd 1 vs. J. Millman = 5.1 shots
• Rd 2 vs. T. Kokkinakis W/O
• Rd 3 vs. H. Chung = 4.6 shots
• Rd 4 vs. M. Cilic = 3.7 shots
• Qtr vs. D. Schwartzman = 5.3 shots
• Semi vs. M. Berrettini = 4.1 shots
• Final vs. D. Medvedev = 5.5 shots

So why did Nadal and Medvedev combine to serve and volley 49 times in the final when they had only combined to serve and volley 10 times (5 Nadal / 5 Medvedev) through to the final?

The answer is simple. Baseline pressure of the highest order.

Nadal was constantly under attack from the back of the court in the final against Medvedev, only winning 47 per cent (96/204) of points from the back of the court. The final against Medvedev was the only match that the Spaniard dipped below 50 per cent with baseline points won in any match for the past two weeks in New York.

The biggest takeaway from the final is that there were 49 combined serve-and-volley points from two of the strongest baseline players in the game, who combined to win 61 per cent (30/49) of their points immediately rushing the net behind a serve. If you can’t craft an advantage from the back of the court, the front of the court always remains a viable option.

A LOOK BACK
Cassis Open Provence (Cassis, France): To say Jo-Wilfried Tsonga turned in an efficient week in Cassis would be an understatement. The Frenchman did not drop a set all tournament, culminating in a 6-1, 6-0 rout of Dudi Sela for the title on Sunday. At just 43 minutes, it was the shortest completed final in ATP Challenger Tour history.

At the age of 34, Tsonga is targeting a return to his Top 10 form in his comeback from a knee injury. The World No. 65 has now won two titles on home soil this year, adding a Challenger crown in Cassis to his ATP 250 triumph at the Open Sud de France in Montpellier.

ATP Tour & ATP Challenger Tour Champions In 2019

AON Open Challenger (Genova, Italy): Sunday was a day that Lorenzo Sonego will never forget. In fact, neither will anyone who attended the final in Genova. Sonego successfully defended his crown at the prestigious clay-court Challenger, surviving 20-year-old Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(6) in two hours and 46 minutes.

But it was the drama of the day that will be talked about for years to come at the Valletta Cambiaso Park. After a five-hour rain delay, the championship finally kicked off just before midnight local time. After a hard-fought, high-octane battle, Sonego would eventually raise his arms in triumph at 1:29am. Not only did he fight off four break points at 3-4 in the third set, but he stormed back from 0/4 down in the deciding tie-break.

“It’s a great moment for me, for my career,” said Sonego. “To win the same tournament in the same place is not easy. I like being here in Genova and I love this tournament.”

World No. 49 Sonego is the first player to retain the Genova title in the 17-year history of the tournament. In going back-to-back, he joins Taylor Fritz (Newport Beach), Gregoire Barrere (Lille) and Pablo Andujar (Alicante) as repeat champions on the Challenger circuit this year.

Scenes at 1:30am ?

After a five-hour ?️ delay and nearly three hours on court, Lorenzo Sonego retains his Genova title 62 46 76(6).@challengergenoa pic.twitter.com/soJnAdIgtJ

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) September 8, 2019

Oracle Challenger Series – New Haven (New Haven, Connecticut, USA): Men’s professional tennis returned to New Haven for the first time since 2010, as Tommy Paul clinched the title at the inaugural Oracle Challenger Series event on the campus of Yale University. From 2005-10, the city hosted the Pilot Pen International, an ATP 250 event, and this week it welcomed the Challenger circuit for the first time.

Paul streaked to his biggest title without dropping a set, capped with a 6-3, 6-3 win over countryman Marcos Giron on Sunday. The 22-year-old American will crack the Top 100 with the victory, his third on the ATP Challenger Tour and second this year. Also the champion on the clay of Sarasota, he rises 22 spots to a career-high No. 92 in the ATP Rankings.

Jinan Open (Jinan, China): China has its newest Challenger champion. His name is Zhang Zhizhen. At the age of 22, the Shanghai native claimed his maiden title on home soil in Jinan. He triumphed 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 over Go Soeda on Sunday, marking the conclusion of a magical week.

Zhang, an unseeded wild card, was sitting at No. 397 in the ATP Rankings when he entered the week in Jinan. He would rise a staggering 170 spots to a career-high No. 227, becoming the fourth Chinese winner in Challenger history. All four have come in the past four years, with Wu Yibing, Zhang Ze and Wu Di the previous champions.

A LOOK AHEAD
A total of six tournaments in three continents highlight this week’s slate. Guido Andreozzi is the defending champion at the Pekao Szczecin Open in Szczecin, Poland, with Albert Ramos-Vinolas, Marco Cecchinato and Philipp Kohlschreiber leading the charge.

At the 32nd edition of the Amex-Istanbul Challenger, Ugo Humbert leads the pack along with Marius Copil and Denis Istomin. And at the 29th edition of the Copa Sevilla, reigning titlist Kimmer Coppejans returns alongside top seed Jaume Munar.

In Shanghai, the Chinese swing continues with Prajnesh Gunneswaran leading the charge, while in Cary, North Carolina, Tommy Paul looks to go back-to-back on home soil. Andreas Seppi is the top seed there.

And in Banja Luka, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Robin Haase is the top seed, with Sumit Nagal also in the field. Just two weeks ago, Nagal battled Roger Federer on Arthur Ashe Stadium at the US Open, taking the first set in his Grand Slam debut.