EPIC WIN FOR RAFA BUT ZVEREV SENDS HIM PACKING
At teatime yesterday Rafael Nadal was being feted at the O2 Arena with the presentation of the year-end world No 1 trophy. Last night, at 9.30pm, he was packing his bags and preparing to leave London, having been knocked out of the AtP Finals as a helpless spectator. the 33-year-old Spaniard had kept his hopes alive of a 41st meeting this afternoon with Roger Federer by coming back to defeat Stefanos tsitsipas 6-7, 6-4, 7-5 in his last group match. Yet he was powerless to prevent defending champion Alex Zverev wrapping up the group stages by defeating the already eliminated Daniil Medvedev 6-4, 7-6. that settled today’s last four, which will see tsitsipas taking on Federer in the first match and Dominic thiem up against Zverev in the second. It means Nadal, third in his group, will today head to Madrid for the Davis Cup Finals. After yesterday’s match, the Spaniard was presented with the year-end world No 1 trophy for the fifth time in his career. In a neat symmetry, Federer and Djokovic have also won it five times, and the only interloper in the last 16 seasons has been Andy Murray three years ago. ‘After all the things I went through in my career with injuries, I never thought at 33-and-a-half I would have this trophy in my hands again,’ said Nadal. ‘It’s really emotional for me. there’s been a lot of work in the shadows to be where we are today and without all my team and family next to me, this thing would be impossible. I have confidence going into next week.’ A day of complex permutations was a product of an excellent and unpredictable week of tennis. One reason is the relatively quick conditions, different to the repetitive slow-medium that is often seen week to week on the tour. tim Henman, who has been appointed as captain of the GB team for January’s AtP Cup, believes Federer is the clear favourite to win the title this weekend, especially as he was able to take yesterday off after his spectacular takedown of Djokovic on thursday night. ‘I think he probably is,’ said Henman. ‘It was an amazing performance from Roger against Novak. I was disappointed in myself that we sit in the commentary box and try and write him off. On an indoor court that’s playing a bit quick, that’s borderline naive. It was one of the very best performances I have seen from him.’
Today’s singles semi-finals: 2pm — Roger Federer v Stefanos Tsitsipas ( LIVE on BBC Two) 8pm — Dominic Thiem v Alex Zverev (LIVE on Amazon Prime).