Jannik Sinner knows that, no matter how much he wins between now and the end of the season, finishing as world number one is in the hands of Carlos Alcaraz, his great rival on the court and with whom he maintains a great friendship off it. Sinner, who on Saturday, October 18, won the Six Kings Slam against Alcaraz, triumphed eight days later in Vienna. His victim was Alexander Zverev, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5. That’s 500 more points for him, putting him 840 points behind the Spaniard in the entry list
Carlitos already knows that the final of the Paris Masters 1000 will ensure him the ATP leadership at the end of the season. On the other hand, the Italian has taken out his particular calculator and will arrive at the ATP Finals in Turin as the top ranked player if he reigns at the Defense Arena and Juan Carlos Ferrero’s pupil does not reach the semifinals.
Then, the difference would be 60 points in Jannik’s favour, with no margin to add in the Masters’ event as an unbeaten champion. Alcaraz only defends 200 and could add 1,300.
The best indoor
Alcaraz said it before the Paris Masters. Asked about his indoor performances (31 wins and 13 losses, plus one title), he argued that “I don’t think I’m bad playing indoors, I think there are others who are better than me“.
The Spanish tennis player refers to a Sinner who is practically untouchable on hard courts under the roof. He has won the last 21 duels in that habitat. Zverev, the world number three, did what he could to stop that streak. He even won the opening set with relative ease. He went down in the third set, on the brink of a tiebreaker. But his best version is back.
His executioner inscribes his name on the Austrian capital’s trophy for the second time and is on a par with Brian Gottfried, Stan Smith, Goran Ivanisevic, Tommy Haas, Roger Federer, Ivan Ljubicic, Jurgen Melzer and Andy Murray. Of his 21 crowns, eight are indoors.
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