Jannik Sinner will serve at the ATP Finals for the first time. © APA / getty / CLIVE BRUNSKILL
Matteo Berrettini took almost two full days to make the decision, but now it is official: The world number 7. gets out of the ATP Finals, it is now Jannik Sinner’s turn. He has to go to court today.
16. November 2021
Author: fop
“My finals are over, I’m devastated,” Berrettini opened his statement with which he announced his injury-related withdrawal in Turin on Monday evening. In it he continues: “When I say I’m sad, that’s an understatement. I feel deprived of the wages that I have earned through a lot of hard work over the past few years. But my body is simply not ready to tackle the next games. “
The 25-year-old Roman suffered an abdominal muscle injury in a duel with Alexander Zverev on Sunday evening and left the pitch in tears. After several examinations on Monday and a short training session on Tuesday afternoon, Berrettini has now definitely raised the white flag.
This means that Sinner will step into the field for the first time at the end of the season for the world’s 8 best tennis players of the year. The current world number 11. had been available as a substitute for days in Turin. He now has to prepare in a hurry for his premiere game against Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz (ATP 9), which will already take place this evening at 9 p.m. In the only meeting of the two so far, this year at the Masters 1000 tournament in Miami, Hurkacz Sinner inflicted his only defeat in the final on the ATP tour.
A mammoth task awaits Sinner
Sinner will also be Berrettini’s last group game on Thursday against the world number 2. Take over Daniil Medvedev. But even with 2 wins, a semi-finals would not be fixed. Incidentally, in the past 25 years a substitute has been used at the Masters 13 times, and none of them have made it to the semi-finals.
For Sinner, the effort at the finals could definitely pay off in one way or another. In addition to a lot of prestige, there are numerous points and lucrative cash rewards (€ 149,573 each as participation and victory bonus). There are 200 points for each preliminary round win. With a win, the young South Tyrolean could overtake the Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime and finish in the top 10 in 2021.
