Day Six of the 2023 ATP Finals will get underway on Friday, November 17, at the Pala Alpitour in Turin, Italy. Here is our preview of the action, as Carlos Alcaraz vs Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev vs Alexander Zverev decide who will advance from the Red Group into the semi-finals.
First up, second and third seeds Alcaraz and Medvedev will face each other in their last group stage clash of the 2023 ATP Finals. The Spaniard lost a three-set battle with Zverev in his first match but brought it back with a straight-sets win against Rublev. During the latter clash, his level seemed to be greatly improved after a few difficult weeks.
Meanwhile, Medvedev has already secured his spot in the semi-finals after two straight-sets victories against Rublev and Zverev, defeating the first player 6-4, 6-2, and the second 7-6 (7), 6-4. This means that there will be less pressure on him in his last group stage meeting, but also that Alcaraz may be able to find the extra motivation.
Alcaraz and Medvedev's head-to-head is currently level at 2-2, with the Russian having won their most recent clash in the semi-finals of the US Open. Prior to this, Alcaraz defeated the 27-year-old at Wimbledon in July of this year and at the 2023 Indian Wells Open, both times in straight sets. Both players look to be very much on form in Turin, but if Alcaraz maintains the level he played against Rublev, during which he won 94% of his first serve points and hit 19 winners, he could clinch the win here.
Prediction: Carlos Alcaraz to win in three sets.
Following this, World No. 7 Zverev will take on World No. 5 Rublev. While the latter's two consecutive straight-set defeats make it impossible for him to qualify, Zverev is still in contention. However, his fate may have already been decided by the time he takes to the court, as he is reliant on Medvedev defeating Alcaraz to give him a chance of making it out of the Red Group. Therefore, his motivation levels during the clash may be dependent on what has happened beforehand.
The German player had a strong start to the tournament when he prevailed over Alcaraz in a three-set thriller, showing resilience by fighting back from a set down to win the tie 6-7 (3), 6-3, 6-4. However, his defeat to Medvedev in straight sets made advancing more difficult.
Zverev currently leads his head-to-head with Rublev 5-3, but the Russian has won their last three matches, all of which were this season. Nevertheless, Rublev has struggled throughout the event so far and looked unwell in his match against Alcaraz.
He has also let his emotions get the better of him already, hitting his racket off his knee and fighting to hold back tears against the Spaniard, so he will need to keep himself more composed if he wants to try and achieve a match win at the Finals, and even then it will be difficult to come back against an on-form Zverev if he is not fully fit himself.
Prediction: Alexander Zverev to win in straight sets.
| Friday, November 17, 2023 | |||
| Day 6 | |||
| Centre Court Starts At 12:00 Noon | |||
| RR | Wesley Koolhof & Neal Skupski | VS | Rohan Bopanna & Matthew Ebden |
| Not Before 2:30 Pm | |||
| RR | Carlos Alcaraz | VS | Daniil Medvedev |
| Not Before 6:00 Pm | |||
| RR | Rajeev Ram & Joe Salisbury | VS | Rinky Hijikata & Jason Kubler |
| Not Before 8:30 Pm | |||
| RR | Andrey Rublev | VS | Alexander Zverev |
INTO THE SEMIFINALS! 2020 champ Daniil Medvedev is the first player into the last four of the ATP Finals, after beating Alexander Zverev 7-6(7), 6-4. Saved two set points in the first set. - Still needs to beat Alcaraz to win the group - Zverev doesn’t depend on himself anymore
