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Introduction

The occupational hazards of round-robin tennis often result in during this phase of the ATP Finals viewers are commonly scratching our heads, scrambling about for a computing device and striving to determine the mind-boggling potential outcomes for advancement. But tonight’s match between Zverev and Felix Auger-Aliassime, mercifully, is easy. It’s a straight shootout: the victor secures a semi-final matchup against Alcaraz at this year-end tournament; the defeated player heads out.

Zverev is the favourite for this: the elite athlete is the player with greater achievements, has previously won at this competition on two prior occasions and leads their head-to-head 6-3, having won both their previous matches on an indoor hard court.

But … this is the surface on which the Canadian has won the bulk of his trophies, he is in great form after his impressive recovery against Shelton on recently and he defeated Zverev in the US Championships early stage in late summer. Additionally, the playing speed is higher in Turin than at Flushing Meadows, which provides an additional advantage in Auger-Aliassime's favour.

If the German player is reserved, similar to his performance against Sinner, and Felix aggressively challenges the European player with his effective service game and bold strategy, it could well be the North American athlete – the one-time phenom who was previously positioned ahead of the Spanish and Italian stars to take over from the legendary trio – who earns the dubious honour of facing the top-ranked player tomorrow.

The match starts: at about 8.30pm local time, 19:30 Greenwich Mean Time.