It’s time for the final round of the ATP Finals Round Robin stage. Here is our Sinner vs Rune prediction and more.
Alcaraz back in business
The most famous moment from yesterday’s matches was when Rublev hit himself bloody with his racquet on his leg. It was gruesome to watch and showed a mental state that I think he needs to work on. He has loads of fans all over the world for his self-deprecating attitude and a good sense of humor, but this type of emotion is not going to be conducive to a great tennis performance. It was reminiscent of the famous Youzhny forehead incident at the Miami Masters 2008.
On the other side of the net, the waters were calmer as Alcaraz had found a better groove than his match against Zverev. It’s Alcaraz’s first time at the ATP Finals and besides getting used to the fast hard courts at the Pala Alpitour, he also needs to get used to the format. One loss is not the end of the world and now he is back to fight for a place in the semi-finals. He will need to defeat an in-form Medvedev to do so.
“After the first match, I was feeling really bad. I didn’t know where my game was. I thought I couldn’t win any matches at this tournament feeling the way I did. After yesterday’s practice session, and after today’s match, I’ve changed the way I feel and the way I will approach the coming days. Now I do have a chance to reach the semi-finals, and to have a good tournament here.”
Carlos Alcaraz
Alcaraz got it done against Rublev 7-5 6-2 and has a good chance against Medvedev on Friday. Especially since the Russian is already qualified.
Rublev, on the other hand, is sadly out of the tournament for this time but will finish the event against Zverev and hope to get one win on his scorecard.
Medvedev battles for the win
As we said in yesterday’s prediction, Medvedev and Zverev had faced many times before. The H2H was 10-7 in Medvedev’s favor, but it was a difficult match to predict based on Zverev’s form against Alcaraz. Also, when Zverev finds his serve on a fast indoor court, he is extremely challenging to break.
But Medvedev managed to break Zverev straight away. He started well but found himself in a slump towards the middle of the first set.
It was a very tough match mentally. I started very well, I was playing well. He was kind of not there yet, but at one moment he stepped up his game and at this moment, for whatever reason, I started playing a little bit worse for a short period of time.
“I’m happy that I managed to regroup and play better at the end of the first set. The end of both sets was very tight… In the tie-break he had set point on his serve. I’m happy because this year I might have lost some matches like this. I’m happy to be able to win.”
Daniil Medvedev
The first set tie-break was arguably the key to the match as Zverev had an easy shot for 5-1 up in the breaker. He missed that and Medvedev came roaring back to take the set and then the match 7-6 6-4.
This means Medvedev is qualified, but he has to keep his engine running against Alcaraz and not enter the semi-final stage in the wrong mindset.
Djokovic vs Hurkacz Prediction
Polish tennis star, Hubert Hurkacz, comes in as an alternate after Tsitsipas’ back injury. This is not an easy spot to be in, especially since he has to start against a motivated world number one.
Unless he hits a large purple patch and plays his best tennis for the majority of the match, there are few roads pointing toward a Hurkacz win. He has a 0-6 head-to-head against Djokovic and Djokovic needs to win to make the semis.
The match might be even on paper as Hurkacz is difficult to break, but this has Djokovic’s name all over it. The bookies give 5.50 on a Hurkacz win and 1.14 on a Djokovic triumph; that says it all.
TN Prediction: Djokovic in 2 sets.
Sinner vs Rune Prediction
This match is an interesting one. If Rune wins, he can qualify, as there will be three players with two wins (based on Djokovic defeating Hurkacz). Also, Sinner has never beaten Rune. He retired once in 2022 and lost their encounter earlier this year in Monte Carlo. But the way Sinner played against Djokovic should give him plenty of confidence and puts him as the favorite.
Still, an exciting match to look forward to with two great ball-strikers.
1.30 on a Sinner win and 3.50 on a Rune win. If you want to know more about these numbers, we have an article called how do tennis betting odds work.
TN Prediction: Sinner in three sets.
