The ATP race to Turin has become increasingly interesting at the end of the US Open. World No.1 Jannik Sinner won his second Grand Slam singles title in New York, beating Taylor Fritz in the final. It was his second Grand Slam title of the season after initial success at the Australian Open. With the indoor season ahead of us, the top ATP players would be trying their best to make it to the season-ending finale.
Novak Djokovic’s mission
If someone had told us at the start of the season that Novak Djokovic would be sitting outside the ATP World Tour Finals positions after the Grand Slam season, we wouldn’t have believed it. However, this is the reality, considering the Serb’s troubled form this season. Although Djokovic won the Olympic Singles Gold Medal in August, he didn’t have anything to show for it on the ATP rankings. As per the new rules, the Olympic performances do not warrant any ATP points.
Djokovic currently has 3260 points for the season, putting him 9th in the race to Turin. The biggest contributing factor to this tally is the 10th Wimbledon final that he reached in July, where he gained 1200 points. However, he has not done anything massive on the ATP Tour as of late. But the good news for him is that there is not much of a difference between the 9th and the 5th spots in the Race to Turin.
As of September 2024, the difference between Djokovic’s spot and Fritz’s spot is only 630 points. The Serb would know that a deep run in one of the remaining two Masters 1000 tournaments could strengthen his chances of qualifying for the ATP Tour Finals. He is the two-time defending champion at the event and has played in the season-ending finale every year since 2018.
Daniil Medvedev’s ambition
Daniil Medvedev is sitting at fourth spot on the Race to Turin. With Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev, and Carlos Alcaraz already qualified, the Russian is the next in line to qualify for the Year-End Championships. However, he has some work to do to ensure that. Medvedev currently sits 4420 points in the ATP Race to Turin, and he needs another 1245 points to match the ATP finals qualification cut.
Medvedev has historically performed well at the end of the season. He won the Shanghai Masters in 2019, reached the finals of the BNP Paribas Masters in 2021, and won the ATP World Tour Finals in 2020. Hence, we back him to qualify again and get a chance to go for a second title at the season-ending finale.
Taylor Fritz’s qualification scenario
If Taylor Fritz goes to Turin, he will look back at his memorable US Open campaign. The American became the first player from his country to reach a Grand Slam final since Andy Roddick at Wimbledon in 2009. Unfortunately for him, he fell short against Sinner in the final. Regardless of that, he has earned 1200 points from the American Grand Slam and currently sits at 5th in the Race to Turin spots.
Fritz has been able to reach the second week of Major tournaments consistently this season but has lacked the big-match ability. The American’s only big title win was at Indian Wells in 2022, where he beat Rafael Nadal in the final. However, the 26-year-old would know that a few more deep runs in a few tournaments would guarantee his spot for Turin. He has only qualified once at the Year-End Championships before (2022).
Main Photo Credit: Danielle Parhizkaran-USA TODAY Sports
