The championship match for the 2018 Nitto ATP Finals will be contested by two players from the Group Guga Kuerten. There were no doubts that World No.1 Novak Djokovic was a strong contender to lift a record-tying 6th title in London, so his qualification to the final is no surprise. He was imperious once again, dispatching Kevin Anderson 6-2 6-2. However, for his opponent, 21-year-old German Alexander Zverev–who needed his last group match to progress to the semis–scored a stunning upset win over Roger Federer; it is fair to say his spot in the final has raised a few eyebrows.
There can be no denying Zverev’s ability, which sets him apart from the rest of the NextGen players, as he already holds three Masters 1000 titles and has recorded some notable top 10 wins in his young career. He will now chase the biggest title of his fledgling career. His semifinal victory over Federer made him the first German to reach the final of the ATP Finals since Boris Becker in 1996, and he will have undoubtedly the toughest assignment in men’s tennis right now.
Novak Djokovic is tennis’ top dog once again and his incredible journey from elbow surgery to world no.1 is one of the greatest achievements in tennis history. Djokovic’s indifferent start to the season included some shocking losses to Taro Daniel and Benoit Paire during the Indian Wells and Miami events, which begged the question as to whether the Serb would ever return to the summit of men’s tennis. But it is so refreshing just how things can take a turn for the better in tennis. He went on a streak from Wimbledon until Paris Bercy (he lost just two events, and won the rest). Now he is just one match away from equaling Federer’s haul of 6 titles at the season-ending finale, and with the way he is playing there can be only one answer.
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Prediction: It is hard to look past Djokovic. His form is reminiscent to when he won the US Open a couple of months ago. Zverev has had a decent tournament, and he will only get better. In their round robin match, it felt like Zverev was going toe to toe against Djokovic for a moment, but the Serb raised his level a little bit, and Zverev couldn’t live with him. When Djokovic is chasing history he always gets the job done.
Pick: Djokovic in 2
