If the Green Group meant ‘go’ on the opening day of the 2022 Nitto ATP Finals, the Red Group could stand for ‘danger’ on Monday in Turin.

The loaded singles foursome features a trio of former champions — Novak Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas — as well as the powerful Andrey Rublev, who is making his third straight appearance at the season finale. It is the first time since 1996 that three former champs have been placed in the same group. 

On Day 2, Djokovic will meet Tsitsipas in the evening session after Medvedev and Rublev square off earlier in the day.

In doubles action, Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios make their much-anticipated Nitto ATP Finals debut against top seeds Neal Skupski and Wesley Koolhof, before Croatians Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic face Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek.

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[2] Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) vs. [7] Novak Djokovic [SER]

Just nine days after their semi-final thriller at the Rolex Paris Masters, Tsitsipas and Djokovic meet on an even bigger stage at the Pala Alpitour. The Greek came within three points of snapping a seven-match losing streak against the former World No. 1 in that contest, leading 4/3 in a final-set tie-break, but Djokovic surged through the finish line to prevail 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(4).

Tsitsipas was nearly rewarded for his steady strategy in the final as he patiently built points and worked his way into the frontcourt with regularity.

“I have weapons that I can use,” he said ahead of the Paris showdown. “But in the past I feel I have used too much spin or power. It’s important that I stay at a medium level and not overdo it. It will be a physical match and I will need to move well.”

Tsitsipas, who leads the ATP Tour this season in wins (60), will have another opportunity to perfect his tactics against the Serbian on Monday. He faces a tall task, with INSIGHTS Shot Quality statistics painting a pretty picture for Djokovic, who leads the pair’s ATP Head2Head 9-2.

While Djokovic will not be looking beyond the second seed — who can finish the season with the year-end No. 1 Pepperstone ATP Ranking by lifting the Turin title as an undefeated champion — the Serbian is chasing some history of his own at the season finale. A five-time champion at the event, Djokovic can match Roger Federer’s record six titles by going all the way this week.

“[It would be] a perfect ending [to the season],” Djokovic told ATP Media on Friday. “The cherry on the cake, for sure, but it’s a long way. It’s a long week.”

The Serbian has won six of the seven sets he’s played against Tsitsipas this year, earning straight-sets wins in the finals in Rome and Astana before the three-set thriller in Paris.

“I played him in the past two tournaments I played, in the final in Astana and the semi-finals in Paris,” said Djokovic. “Both matches were quite close, particularly the one in Paris. I know that I am expecting a tough match without a doubt.”

With his playing style described as ‘Solid Baseliner’ by INSIGHTS, Djokovic will one again look to use his watertight game to blunt the Tsitsipas attack. But the Serbian’s greatest strength may be a trait that cannot be quantified — his ice-cool composure under pressure.

[4] Daniil Medvedev vs. [6] Andrey Rublev

Both Medvedev and Rublev have become regulars at the Nitto ATP Finals, with Medvedev appearing each year since 2019 and Rublev returning each year since 2020. But while Rublev is yet to advance beyond the round-robin stage, Medvedev has reached the final in each of the past two years, lifting the trophy in 2020 in the event’s last year in London.

With a 9-4 record at the season finale, Medvedev knows better than most what it takes to succeed at the unique competition. 

“From the first match, you’re going to play a tough opponent,” Medvedev said on media day. “There is a special energy about this tournament and I absolutely love it, and I hope to show my best tennis. I’m feeling confident, but you never know before the first match.”

Adding to the uncertainty is the fact that he has not met his opening opponent since the 2021 Cincinnati semi-finals, where Rublev claimed a three-set victory. Prior to that meeting, Medvedev won the four previous ATP Head2Head matchups between the pair — all in straight sets, all in quarter-finals and all on hard courts — including at the 2020 US Open and 2021 Australian Open.

While Rublev is known for his power and passion on the court, he is far more than a baseline basher. As such, the 25-year-old is looking forward to matching wits with a master tactician in Medvedev.

“Against Daniil, that’s going to be a real chess match,” Rublev said, knowing that he will have to time his aggression well. “I’m not even looking at my other matches. I believe both of us will show a great level that spectators will enjoy.”

With both players well aware of the difficulty of their group, the stakes are sky-high from the start.

Doubles Action

The ‘Special Ks’ are set to bring their brash brand of doubles to the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time, with Kokkinakis and Kyrgios seeking their third title of the season. The Australian Open champs are bidding to become the first pair of doubles debutants to reach the title match at the year-end event since 2016, and the first to claim the trophy since 2013.

“It’s [going to be] a pretty awesome experience,” Kokkinakis said. “I don’t think it’s something we expected coming into the year. To do it with such a good mate, there’s going to be good energy out there.”

The duo, who first teamed up at the 2013 Australian Open, face the toughest possible opening test against top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski. The Dutch-British pair is making its debut at the Nitto ATP Finals as the No. 1 team in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings after winning a Tour-leading seven titles in 2022.

The marquee doubles matchup will be the first meeting between the pairs.

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Returning semi-finalists Mektic and Pavic will meet fifth seeds Dodig and Krajicek in the second doubles match of Day 2 — a rematch of their meeting last month in the Astana quarter-finals, won by Mektic/Pavic.

Th 33-year-old Mektic is seeking his second Nitto ATP Finals title after winning the 2020 crown alongside Wesley Koolhof. Dodig reached the 2014 final with Marcelo Melo, while Krajicek is making his debut at the season finale.

In just his second match in the space of 10 weeks, Rafael Nadal was defeated by the inspired debutant Taylor Fritz on Sunday at the Nitto ATP Finals. Yet there was no sign of panic from the Spaniard despite his opening loss at the Pala Alpitour, where he believes one crucial factor cost him dearly in the Green Group clash.

“It’s about time,” said Nadal at his post-match press conference. “Tennis and the sport in general, it’s about time. I have less time than him to do what I want to do on the ball. I felt that everything was going so fast. When that happens, normally you are under stress, and you don’t have the time to play the kind of shot that you want.”

Since reaching the fourth round of the US Open while struggling with an abdominal tear in September, Nadal’s sole tour-level singles outing was a three-set defeat to Tommy Paul at the Rolex Paris Masters 11 days ago. The 36-year-old acknowledged the difficulties of taking on high-class opponents immediately after an injury lay-off.

“In most of the points of the match, I was in a defensive position, and he was in an offensive position,” said Nadal. “That’s what happened… But every single time I came back from injury, [it’s not normal] playing against top players [from] the first day. That’s what’s happens when you are coming back playing Masters 1000s and [the Nitto ATP Finals].”

Nadal was full of praise for Fritz, the first American singles player to compete at the season finale since John Isner in 2018. The 25-year-old showed few signs of nerves as his clean hitting pulled Nadal effectively around the court throughout the pair’s round-robin clash.

“We can find different ways to explain what happened, at the end [of the day], Fritz played very well,” said Nadal. “I was not able to handle his power. It’s obvious that in this kind of surface, you need to play very well. You don’t have time to think for a tactic… There is no time. The things are going so quick.

“Serving like Fritz served, then you are under pressure all the time. When somebody is serving that way, on the return he is going for every shot. [It was] just well played from him, not enough from me.”

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Nadal is chasing his maiden Nitto ATP Finals title this week, and despite his opening defeat the Spaniard remains in contention for the coveted year-end No. 1 spot in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings. Nadal must now win the title in Turin to pip Carlos Alcaraz and Stefanos Tsitsipas in the race for World No. 1, but first he turns his attention to his next Green Group opponent, Felix Auger-Aliassime.

The Canadian also fell to an opening loss on Sunday against Casper Ruud, and Nadal is aware that his semi-final qualification hopes are hanging in the balance as he prepares for his third ATP Head2Head meeting with Auger-Aliassime.

“It’s a match like a normal tournament already, because the loser will go out of the tournament normally,” said Nadal. “[I] just accept that I need to do better things. I hope to be ready to make that happen. He finished the season playing unbelievable, winning [three] tournaments in a row, playing so well. [It is] another big challenge.”

Injuries were a major storyline in the previous two 2022 meetings between Rafael Nadal and Taylor Fritz. On Sunday at the Nitto ATP Finals, both men were operating with clean bills of health in Turin — with Fritz putting forth an equally clean performance to earn a famous upset.

With a 7-6(3), 6-1 win, Fritz completed a dream debut at the season finale while denting Nadal’s bid to win the lone big title that has eluded him in his legendary career. The Spaniard’s defeat also means he must now claim the Turin title to overtake Carlos Alcaraz for the year-end No. 1 Pepperstone ATP Ranking.

“It feels great. I felt like coming out first mach, especially for my hopes of getting out of the group, it was going to be really important,” said Fritz, who moved above Casper Ruud into first place in the Green Group. “I didn’t want to put myself in a position where I needed to win out if I wanted to move on. I came out and played a great match, and I couldn’t be happier.”

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Fritz improved to 2-2 in his ATP Head2Head series against Nadal, backing up his win in the Indian Wells final in March — a match the American nearly didn’t play due to an ankle injury. He also gained a measure of revenge after a heartbreaking Wimbledon quarter-final defeat in which Nadal came from behind despite struggling with an abdominal tear.

The last man into the Turin field, Fritz showed he belonged with a dominant display as he controlled the match with his serve and forehand. The 25-year-old did not face a break point and created nine of his own, converting on two of six in the second set as he ran away with the victory by winning the final five games.

Both men looked to find their forehands early and often in the rallies, and it was Fritz who found more success with the crucial tactic, finishing the match with 23 winners to Nadal’s 18. The INSIGHTS In Attack statistics show that the American hit 30 per cent of his shots from attacking positions in the match, compared to 21 per cent for Nadal.

While Fritz did most of his damage off the ground from his forehand wing, the American pointed out a crucial edge on his rally backhand as he benefitted from the slick indoor surface at the Pala Alpitour.

“The court’s definitely fast. For me, fast is good for my serve, it’s good for my backhand,” he explained in his on-court interview. “I feel like different speeds always have parts that help my game, and parts that hurt my game. On a slower court, I have so much more time to kind of load up on a forehand.

“On a court like this, I can lean into my backhand and hit it deep cross to Rafa’s forehand, and it makes it a but tougher for him to step in and crush it. On a slower surface, he gets time on the forehand when I go backhand cross, and it’s probably done for me. So I’d say that’s where it helps me the most on the ground against him.”

After Fritz failed to convert on three break points in the opening set, he never trailed in the tie-break after taking a 3/0 lead with the help of a Nadal double fault.

The American dealt a final blow late in the second set by converting on his fifth break point of a six-deuce game. He then quickly served out the match with one hour, 37 minutes played to record his first win against a Top 3 opponent in 12 attempts.

Nadal, who was playing in his second ATP Tour singles match since the US Open, has now suffered three straight defeats, all against Americans. He was turned back by Frances Tiafoe at the US Open and Tommy Paul two weeks ago in Paris before Sunday’s loss at the hands of Fritz.

Did You Know?

Fritz is the first American singles player to compete at the Nitto ATP Finals since John Isner in 2018. He is bidding to become the first American semi-finalist since Jack Sock in 2017 (London), the first finalist since James Blake in 2006 (Shanghai) and the first champion since Pete Sampras in 1999 (Hanover).

Eight champions, one unforgettable interview. That is what fans received Sunday when the ATP released an exclusive all-eight interview with every singles player competing at the Nitto ATP Finals.

Top seed Rafael Nadal and five-time season finale champion Novak Djokovic quickly praised one another, with the rest of the champions listening intently.

“I think I have to say to Novak, he’s able to be super professional, to control his body, to hold the passion. It doesn’t matter how things are going, he always keeps going until the end and that’s something very difficult, especially in a super long career after all the success,” Nadal said. “To keep having the passion and the love for the game, I think it’s something I admire a lot.”

Djokovic and Nadal have met a record 59 times (Djokovic leads 30-29) in their ATP Head2Head rivalry. Five of those clashes have come at the Nitto ATP Finals, with another battle possible later in the week in the knockout stages of the year-end championships.

“I am really privileged to have the rivalry that we had over the years,” Djokovic said. “I think we respect each other a lot and we push each other to the limit and kind of motivate each other to go even higher. It’s great to be part of that era.”

^{Photo Credit: Arturo Holmes/Getty Images}
It was clear the rest of the players in the room at the Gallerie d’Italia — all of whom are 26 or younger — were eager to hear what their legendary colleagues said. Casper Ruud explained the impact Djokovic and Nadal have had on him.

“Everything they have brought to the table and every match is pure passion,” Ruud said. “Them playing against each other was some of the most exciting things you could watch in sports in my opinion.”

Only one man will emerge the ultimate champion at the end of the week in Turin. Every match will be difficult, and the likelihood of smooth sailing is small. Djokovic found a succinct way to describe the rollercoaster that is the Nitto ATP Finals.

“You go from your lowest to your highest in one or two days,” Djokovic said. “It’s kind of a journey of the entire season congested in [eight] days. It’s quite a unique event.”

Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas are the three players in the field who have lifted the trophy at the season finale. According to Medvedev, the competitors must be on top of their game from the first point.

“For me it’s about beating the best players in the world, because there is no other tournament where first match straight away you’re going to play a Top 10 player. There is not one more tournament like this, and it’s tough,” Medvedev said. “You have to be at your ‘A’ game from the first match ’til the last one and that’s the toughest part, but that’s what you have to do to win.”

Will this be the year Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury emerge victorious at the Nitto ATP Finals? The American-British duo made a good start on Sunday evening in Turin.

The second seeds battled past seventh seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 6-3, 6-7(8), 10-8 in a Turin rollercoaster to move to 1-0 in Red Group action. They needed one hour and 51 minutes to win a topsy-turvy encounter at the Pala Alpitour.

Ram and Salisbury had the match well in hand up a set and leading 6/4 in the second-set tie-break, but Granollers and Zeballos refused to go away. They showed clutch returning to claw into a Match Tie-break.

A thrilling match came to a surprising end when Zeballos missed a high swinging forehand volley on Ram and Salisbury’s third match point. This year’s US Open champions have now won five consecutive matches against Granollers and Zeballos.

The clash was full of highlight-reel shotmaking, with all four players hitting stunning returns and showing superb athleticism on centre court. Earlier in the day, Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara opened Red Group with a victory against Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer.

Ram and Salisbury have positive memories at the Pala Alpitour, where they advanced to the championship match last year. This is the duo’s fourth consecutive appearance together at the season finale.

Felix Auger-Aliassime is determined to respond at the Nitto ATP Finals following his round-robin defeat Sunday against Casper Ruud in Turin.

The Canadian arrived at the prestigious year-end event having won 16 of his past 17 matches. However, he was unable to find his best level against the Norwegian at the Pala Alpitour, leaving him with work to do if he is to qualify for the semi-finals.

“My back is against the wall,” Auger-Aliassime said in his post-match press conference. “It would have been better to start with a win here. For Casper, I’m sure it’s a big weight off his shoulders. For me, I need to bounce back and play better, play a little bit better. I’m not far from playing well, but there are a few things I can do better. I will try to use the day tomorrow to do that, to work on a few things.”

The 22-year-old enjoyed an impressive end to the season, lifting tour-level trophies in Florence, Antwerp and Basel. His form propelled him to seventh in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin, before he sealed qualification in Paris.

Auger-Aliassime admitted that he felt the pressure in the lead-up to his debut match in Turin, but felt his nerves did not impact his performance against Ruud.

“I was thinking about it the past few days,” said Auger-Aliassime when asked about the pressure of competing in Turin. “It’s kind of strange. You have this stress and pressure, this energy to qualify for this event the whole year. Especially at the end of the year, [with] the way I did it. You [come here], but there are still matches to play and compete. It’s not like, now I’m qualified, I can rest. I was thinking that would be a mistake, to come here and act like I’m happy and this is it.

“I felt good today. No problem. I was thinking maybe my first time I’m not going to feel great. From the first balls, I felt good, I felt normal. I’ve played on other big stages before. This match [didn’t] feel any different.”

Auger-Aliassime will look to bounce back when he faces Rafael Nadal and Taylor Fritz in his remaining Green Group matches in Italy. The 22-year-old feels he will have to return better if he is to advance.

“I feel in the past few weeks and months, when I was playing well, I was returning much better than I did today,” Auger-Aliassime said. “[I was] still serving great, apart from one game where it wasn’t even my serve. I did a few mistakes, bad mistakes, in the second set. I felt like I could have returned much better and given myself chances because I won [only] a few points on my return, and that’s not enough against a player like Casper.”

Nitto ATP Finals debutant Taylor Fritz answers a lightning round of questions about Italy…

Visit the Colosseum or climb Mount Vesuvius?
I would probably visit the Colosseum. It sounds a little easier. Sounds like a more chill day.

Attend a Serie A football match or watch the historic Italian Grand Prix at Monza?
I’d go to the football match. I like soccer.

Films set in Italy: The Godfather or The Italian Job?
The Godfather.

Espresso or Cappuccino?
Cappucino.

Favourite pizza topping?
Probably pepperoni or olive.

Is there a topping you won’t eat?
Anchovies.

Favourite pasta dish?
Probably a truffle pasta or a carbonara.

Which Italian dish can you cook best?
Probably none of them… I guess I can cook pasta. It’s not too tough.

What first comes to mind when you think of Italy?
Probably pasta. The food.

How does it feel to be here for your debut?
It’s great, I’m really excited. It was one of my goals at the beginning of the year to be here, and obviously a week ago I thought I was going to be here as an alternate. So, I’m lucky, I’m fortunate to be playing and I’m really excited to get started.

Thoughts on the format, will you approach it differently?
No. It’s good, if you don’t play a good match or lose a match, you still get two more to try again. I also just like the fact that it’s against the best players. I feel like I always play my best tennis against the best players, so it will be good fun.