Zverev Battles Auger-Aliassime in Season-Ending Championships Match
Introduction
The inherent challenges of tournament pool play mean at this point of the ATP Finals we’re often left scratching our heads, hastily looking for a calculator and striving to determine the mind-boggling permutations of qualification. But this evening's contest between Zverev and Auger-Aliassime, thankfully, is simple. This is a winner-takes-all affair: the victor earns a final four contest against Alcaraz at this championship finale; the unsuccessful competitor is eliminated.
Zverev is the favourite for this: the elite athlete is the more experienced competitor, has been the champion at this tournament on two prior occasions and leads their head-to-head with six victories against three defeats, securing victories in both the games they've played on an covered hard surface.
Yet … this type of playing field on which Auger-Aliassime has claimed the majority of his titles, he is in great form after his remarkable turnaround against Ben Shelton on Wednesday and he took out the German in the US Championships third round in August. Plus, the court pace is quicker in Turin than at Flushing Meadows, which is even more beneficial in Auger-Aliassime's favor.
If the German player is reserved, as he did against the Italian, and the Canadian presses the European player with his stinging serves and bold strategy, there is a strong chance the North American athlete – the former prodigy who was once in line ahead of the Spanish and Italian stars to succeed the tennis icons – who obtains the dubious honour of competing with the world No 1 the next day.
Play begins: at about 8.30pm local time, 19:30 Greenwich Mean Time.
