Alexander Zverev has climbed the rankings to No. 2 in the world and could secure the No. 2 seed at the 2025 Australian Open with a decent performance – or an early exit for Carlos Alcaraz – at the Nitto ATP Finals.
Zverev will start his week with a tenth match against Andrey Rublev on Monday evening in Turin. The German leads the head-to-head series 6-3 and has won every one of his meetings at the Masters 1000, the Grand Slam and the year-end tournament. He leads Rublev 5-0 in such scenarios, including a 6-4, 6-4 defeat during a back-and-forth contest in the same tournament last year.
Rublev will be under intense pressure to turn things around on Monday. The ninth-placed Russian has not had a really great season; He saved it simply by reaching the Masters 1000 finals in Madrid (title) and Montreal (runner-up). Rublev returned to skating with a 3-5 record in his last eight games.
Zverev, on the other hand, is brilliant. The 27-year-old is coming off a Paris Masters title, having dropped just one set all week to the in-form Arthur Fels in the third round.
Furthermore, Zverev’s history at the Nitto ATP Finals is even more impressive than that of his opponent. The No. 2 seed has won 14 all-time appearances at the prestigious event, including two titles (2018, 2021). Rublev is 4-9 and has only reached the semi-finals once in four previous appearances.
All signs point to Zverev winning this match in convincing fashion.
Pick: Zverev at 2
