DJOKOVIC THE MAN TO BEAT IN SEASON’S BIG FINALE
▶ Jon Turner provides a player-byplayer guide for the ATP Finals at London’s o2 Arena that starts today
The final action of the 2018 season in the world of men’s tennis, the ATP Finals, begins today in London. The top eight performing players over the past 11 months, who have avoided end-of-season injuries, will compete over eight days.
Rafael Nadal, the French Open champion, and Juan Martin del Petro are both absent with injury, and they have been replaced by Kei Nishikori and John Isner.
Here is a look at the line-up and what to expect.
Novak Djokovic (Serbia)
After struggling at the start of the year with his elbow, an injury that curtailed his 2017 season early, the Serbian has found his best tennis again.
It began in June with his march to the Queen’s final. From there he embarked on a sparkling run, collecting the Wimbledon title and the Cincinnati Masters – becoming the first player to win all nine Masters – before clinching his 14th major at the US Open.
The Shanghai Masters soon followed as did a run to the Paris Masters final and a return to world No 1. The 31-year-old is by far and away the best player in the world right now.
Roger Federer (Switzerland)
The year started in flawless fashion for the Swiss, winning his sixth Australian Open title – and 20th grand slam – in January before going on to retake the No 1 spot for the first time in five years.
But, the second half of the season has been somewhat disappointing, with a shock fourth-round exit at the Australian Open the nadir.
There have been signs in recent weeks that Federer is rediscovering his form, winning the Basel Indoor before narrowly losing to Djokovic in the Paris semi-finals.
Alexander Zverev (Germany)
Overall, it has been another impressive year for Zverev: three more titles to add to his growing collection, including one of the standout tournament performances of the season by winning the Madrid Masters without facing a break point all week.
However, it has been another year of curious underachievement in the four grand slams. A third round loss at the Australian Open was followed by his first quarter-final appearance at a major at the French Open. He was then defeated in the third round at both Wimbledon and the US Open.
Zverev should be a leading contender at the ATP Finals, so long as his shoulder injury heals in time.
Kevin Anderson (South Africa)
It is easy to forget that Anderson was a perennial top-20 player for much of his career, his rise to elite status even more remarkable having returned from a knee injury that saw him slump to world No 80 in 2016.
This year has yielded two more titles, winning the inaugural New York Open (previously the Memphis Open) in February, and the Vienna Open last month.
Anderson also reached his second grand slam final, making the Wimbledon showpiece after an epic semi-final against John Isner, winning 26-24 in the final set. Unsurprisingly, Anderson struggled against Djokovic in the final and went down in straight sets. Anderson is in good form, and will fancy his own chances in a group that should be tightly-contested.
Marin Cilic (Croatia)
The 2018 season has been somewhat emblematic of Cilic as a player: areas of brilliance mixed with spells of mediocrity.
The high points were reaching the Australian Open final and then outlasting Djokovic in the Queen’s final.
Yet there have been alarming
drops off in form as well, highlighted by throwing away a two sets lead to lose to Guido Pella in round two of Wimbledon.
If the Cilic who shone in Australia and Queen’s turns up then he will be a threat. But if it the inconsistent one seen at Wimbledon and in recent weeks he will not get out of the group stages.
Dominic Thiem (Austria)
Another year that has seen Thiem solidify his status as one of the leading clay court players. His biggest milestone of the season came in June when he reached his first grand slam final at the French Open, where he lost to claycourt master Nadal.
Thiem, 25, has shown good form during the latter part of the season, winning the St Petersburg title on an indoor hard court before reaching his first non-clay Masters semi-final in Paris last time out.
He is in good form but will have to play his best tennis to have any chance of progressing from his group.
Kei Nishikori (Japan)
After recovering from wrist injury, Nishikori has enjoyed a number of deep runs throughout the season, starting with a final appearance in Monte Carlo in April and then a quarter-final at Wimbledon.
The latter part of the season has seen greater consistency, starting with a semi-final at the US Open.
Nishikori, a two-time semi-finalist at the ATP Finals, could well be the tournament dark horse.
John Isner (United States)
In many ways, this has been the stand-out season of Isner’s career. The American won his first Masters title, in Miami, and reached his first grand slam semi-final at Wimbledon.
Isner also matched his best effort at the US Open by reaching the quarter-finals but his form has been sporadic since.
He is rightly considered an outsider at the ATP Finals, but if he can get that monster serve working, Isner can cause problems for any opponent.