Alexander Zverev vs. Carlos Alcaraz: ATP Tennis Final – live | ATP finals

First set: Zverev* 4-4 Alcaraz (*denotes next server)

Alcaraz breathes a sigh of relief from that nose strip as he claims his most comfortable hold of the match, up to 15. But will he have enough to keep up with Zverev in the closing stages of this set? Zverev, remember: if he wins this set, he will qualify for the semifinals, even if he loses the match.

First set: Zverev 4-3 Alcaraz* (*denotes next server)

There isn’t much to see in this service game. Zverev zooms to 15; Alcaraz tries another of his drop shots on game point, but it timidly falls into the net. Zverev picked up where he left off with his serve against Ruud, landing 82% of his first serve today and winning 100% of the points on his second. Even a returner of Alcaraz’s quality struggles to do much damage.

First set: Zverev* 3-3 Alcaraz (*denotes next server)

After his service problems so far, Alcaraz could use a simpler grip here. But Zverev, despite almost clattering into the billboard, manages to take the first point and then drills a double-handed backhand winner down the line for 15-30. Zverev tries the same trick, this time after the return, but this backhand crashes into the net. 30-all. 40-30. Deuce. Zverev attacks with pleasure and Alcaraz doesn’t quite have his usual energy; no surprise given his poor health this week. But Alcaraz fights smart and hits Zverev with a body serve before winning the match. The Spaniard held on without facing a break point, but it was still not reassuring.

First set: Zverev 3-2 Alcaraz* (*denotes next server)

So much for Alcaraz’s cold, it is Zverev who is left out in the cold here while Alcaraz eliminates his opponent with the pass. 15-30 … could Alcaraz get his first break points? No, because Zverev rushes through the next three points to hold on.

First set: *Zverev 2-2 Alcaraz (*denotes next server)

I turn my attention back to Turin just as Zverev bats away Alcaraz’s attempt to give himself. three break points at 0-40, adding to the two he had in Alcaraz’s previous service game. Alcaraz recovers to deuce again, but Zverev, undeterred, gets it another chance to break in his favor. Alcaraz makes Zverev look a bit slow on the last break point, after which the Spaniard sprints in his favor. He takes the play by changing his tactics by coming forward and burying an angled forehand volley. That’s six break points that have now come and gone for Zverev.

Meanwhile, at the Billie Jean King Cup final, Magda Linette finally got past Sara Torribes Tormo after THREE HOURS AND 51 MINUTES in the first leg of the Poland v Spain match. It means Great Britain’s match against Germany (which starts at 4pm GMT) could be postponed.

First set: Zverev 2-1 Alcaraz* (*denotes next server)

15-0, 30-0, 40-0. Alcaraz stops the run of points with a winning forehand return, which he takes early and on the rise. That is the level required against the German serving machine. Normal serve then resumes with Zverev holding the 15.

First set: Zverev* 1-1 Alcaraz (*denotes next server)

Alcaraz, still wearing his pink nose strip (hopefully not the same one he wore against Rublev, otherwise it will be very sweaty), paired with his lavender and turquoise outfit, also takes a few points to get started on his serve. He goes from 0-30 to 15-30, but then again aims wrong. 15-40, two early break points. Alcaraz clears the danger with a 140mph ace and a heavy, unreturned second serve. Deuce. Advantage Alcaraz. Game Alcaraz, as he hits the first of likely several drop shots today.

First set: Zverev 1-0 Alcaraz* (*denotes next server)

Alcaraz therefore chose to receive first, which seems a smart decision when Zverev quickly throws a backhand wide. And that quickly becomes 0-30. Zverev then finds his range with a snarling serve down the T that Alcaraz can’t get back. The fourth point is the deciding factor, but an exciting rally ends with a goal from Alcaraz. No time to feel each other here; the couple is close from the start. 30-all. 40-30. Zverev hits away a volley to get on the board first.

Time prediction. Alcaraz obviously has a little more to his game, but Zverev’s previously fallible forehand has improved a lot and he’s serving so big this week. The indoor conditions suit his game so well.

Normally I would say that Zverev would be more likely to get tight in the crucial moments than Alcaraz, who is such a big match player – his four wins from four slam finals are proof of that. But with Alcaraz not yet fully fit and Zverev in formidable form already with one foot in the semi-finals, I’m not so sure Zverev will wobble today. I give Zverev the edge.

The 6-foot-2 Zverev towers over Alcaraz during pre-match pleasantriesbut Alcaraz refuses to be intimidated and wins the toss, choosing to receive first. He then charges to the back of the field Rafa-style to begin the warm-up.

And now the players come, first Alcaraz, then Zverev. Alcaraz will receive a warmer welcome, even though he was their hero Jannik Sinner’s biggest rival this season – and that could well happen for the next decade.

The music is pumping out. The dancers warm up the audience, as they have been doing all week. And now a tennis ball bounces on the big screens with the sound of a very loud heartbeat. It’s all a far cry from Wimbledon, where Alcaraz won the second of the two slam titles he has this year.

Alcaraz says about the confrontation with Zverev:

My chances of qualifying are still there, so we will do everything we can. But (Zverev) is certainly one of the strongest players in the world.

I think I’m coming back pretty well, but he has a really big serve and plays incredibly from the baseline, which makes him a really tough opponent to play against.

I don’t like facing him because of his serves and shots, but I try to discover the beauty of playing him.

Zverev says about his ATP Finals record:

It means I’m old! But I still don’t feel old. I hope I still have ten good years ahead of me, but I think it’s a young group of guys. There has been something of a shift in tennis this year and I think that’s a good thing. They are exciting new players and everyone loves watching them.

I expect a tough match (against Alcaraz), we have had some very tough battles in grand slams this year. I’m looking forward to it and hope it’s fun to watch.

Some statistics. Their head-to-head score is tied at 5-5, with Alcaraz winning the match that mattered most, this year’s French Open final. But Zverev did beat the Spaniard in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open in January and at the ATP Finals last year.

The 27-year-old Zverev, the 2018 and 2021 champion, is making his seventh appearance at the ATP Finals, the most of any competitor this year, while the 21-year-old Alcaraz is looking for his first season title on only the second attempt.

The current situation behind the scenes: Alcaraz, pink nose strip firmly in place, headphones on, flexes his muscles while pulling on a resistance band.

The current standings in the John Newcombe group: Zverev is at the top, followed by Ruud, Alcaraz and then Rublev. All four are still in the mix.

And look who’s coming back:

Tim Joyce’s piece about the philosophical Coco Gauff is also definitely worth reading:

Meanwhile, during the finals of the Billie Jean King Cup, Great Britain will start their campaign against Germany later, with Emma Raducanu set to return from injury after almost two months away. Our tennis correspondent Tumaini Carayol is in Malaga:

In doubles, Britain’s Henry Patten and his Finnish partner Harri Heliovaara finished top of the Mike Bryan group yesterday with three wins from three, but Germans Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz failed to complete a perfect campaign in the Bob Bryan group as they have just lost to Rohan Bopanna and Matthew Ebden 7-5, 6-7 (6) 10-7. However, it makes no difference to qualification, as Krawietz and Puetz are already through and Bopanna and Ebden, in their final tournament together after a two-year partnership, have already been eliminated.

Preamble