November 19, 2023 Update: Novak Djokovic just won the 2023 ATP Finals, giving him his 7th ATP Finals title. Djokovic, with seven titles, now has the most ATP Finals victories of all time.
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The tennis season is quickly coming to an end with the ongoing ATP Finals in Turin, Italy. The indoor tournament is being held in Turin for the third year in a row. The ATP Finals is the final ATP tournament of the year. It is also the most prestigious tournament after the four Grand Slams.
The tournament features just the eight best singles players of the year and eight best doubles teams of the year. The tournament also uses a unique round-robin format not found in other ATP tournaments. The tournament singles winner wins 500 ATP points, and if he is undefeated, he wins 1,500 points. Prize money for 2023 is $2.2 Million dollars to the singles champion, which is increased to $4.8 Million for an undefeated champion.
History
The first ATP Finals were held in 1970. The eight players who achieved the best results throughout the year are invited to participate in the tournament. For the first 19 years, the tournament was organized by the International Lawn Tennis Federation. In 1990, the tournament was taken over by the ATP. In 2009, the tournament name was changed from the Tennis Masters Cup to the ATP World Tour Finals. In 2017, the tournament name was shorted to the ATP Finals.
Credit: Wonderhatch Ltd
FUN FACT: While the ATP organized the final tournament, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) simultaneously organized its own, competing final tournament between 1990-99. The competition was called the Grand Slam Cup and 16 players who achieved the best results in grand slam tournaments during the season competed in it. In 2000, the two tournaments merged to create the Tennis Masters Cup.
The tournament has moved around over the years including New York from 1977-1989, Frankfurt, Germany from 1990-1995, Hanover Germany from 1996-1999, London from 2009-2020, and Turin, Italy since 2021. It is expected that the tournament will continue to be held at Pala Alpitour in Turin until 2025.
Credit: 2023 Getty Images
FUN FACT: The final tournament of the season is traditionally held indoors on a hard surface, but there were certain exceptions. The tournament was held outdoors on grass courts in 1974 in Melbourne. It was also played outdoors, but on hard courts, from 2003-2004 in Houston.
Format of the ATP Finals
How is it determined which eight players get invited to the tournament?
The top seven ranked players after the final ATP tournament prior to the ATP Finals are automatically invited. The eight spot is reserved for a Grand Slam champion during the year who is ranked between 8-20 in the world. If there are two such players, the player with the highest ranking is invited. If there are no such players, then the 8th ranked player is invited. Two alternates are also invited in case an invited player must drop out
FUN FACT: Goran Ivanisevic, Marin Cilic, Gaston Gaudio are players who in the past were invited to play in the ATP Finals because they won a major title even though they were not ranked among the top eight players.
At the ATP finals, the eight players competing players are divided into two groups of four, with two players from each group advancing to the semi-finals. Each singles match is two out of three sets, with a tie break at the end of each set. Each player plays the other 3 players in group. The winner of each group plays the 2nd place winner of the other group in the semifinals, with the winners advancing to the finals.
The ATP Finals trophy is designed by the English company, Thomas Lyte.
At the ATP Finals, a separate trophy, also designed by Thomas Lyte, is given to the player who finishes the year ranked #1 in the world. In 2023, Novak Djokovic finished the year ranked as the best player in the world for a record eight time. At 36, Djokovic is also the oldest player to finish the year at the top of the world rankings.
Which players have been most successful at the ATP Finals?
Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer had the most success to date at the ATP Finals, winning the championship trophy six times each. Of course, Djokovic is still playing so he has the opportunity to win the tournament again.
FUN FACT: Novak Djokovic made history by winning the 2022 ATP Finals when he was 35 years and five months old, making him the oldest player to win the ATP Finals. Since he was the undefeated winner, he also won $4.7 Million, which is the largest amount ever won at a tournament in the history of tennis.
Roger Federer has qualified for the ATP Finals the most times, with 18 invitations (although he only played 17 times because he withdrew in 2020), which is 2nd to Nadal who was invited to the tournament 17 times. Roger Federer has also won the most matches at the ATP Finals, with a record of 59-17.
Behind Djokovic and Federer on the list of players with the most trophies at the ATP Finals are Pete Sampras and Ivan Lendl with five titles each. Illie Nastase won four trophies while John McEnroe and Boris Becker won the tournament three times each.
The most successful in the doubles competition were John McEnroe and Peter Fleming, who won seven consecutive titles from 1978-84.
