In the evening, the challenge with the American Fritz

Today, in Turin, as far as the ATP Finals program is concerned, it is the turn of ìl Nastase group, then Sinner. The world No. 1, after beating, without any major headaches, De Minaur, aims to overcome the American Fritz, fresh from his fine success, on the first day, against Medvedev. A match that could open the door to the semifinals for the blue outfielder.

Counting in hand, if De Minaur, in the early afternoon match, beats Medvedev (who appeared unfocused in his debut with Fritz) and, at the same time, Sinner folds the American as happened at the US Open final, here is that the Italian would be certain to qualify, from first in the rankings, for the semifinals of the 2024 edition ATP Finals.

Sinner è in high spirits and knows that, winning the pass to the semifinals with a day in advance would also be a good shot to better dose his energy. Clearly a lot will depend on De Minaur, although beating Fritz è however, it is crucial to look at the continuation of the tournament with optimism. By winning with the American, even if Medvedev were to De Minaur, Sinner would have something to smile about with two wins out of two matches played (and, in fact, the near certainty of passage to the round).

Compounding Alcaraz’s uphill start (bad loss in his opener against Ruud), Sinner è right now, the clear favorite to win the ATP Finals. Today è a key day to certify his No. 1 status and put even more pressure on his opponents.

The Cavs off to their best start since the Warriors (2015/16)

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Cleveland continues to impress. Thanks to a stunning performance by Mitchell (36 points), the Cavs also bent the Bulls’ resistance (119-113 the final), bringing their record to 12 wins and no losses. To find such a dazzling start, one has to go back to the Warriors of the 2015/16 season, those of the initial 24 wins (they would later close the season with a 73-9 record).

“It’s good to be part of history. Nothing should be taken for granted, especially these feats. We are doing it in so many different ways. There’è always someone who, every time, sounds the charge. However, è always an effort from the whole team”, Mitchell&#39s words reported by ESPN.

Applause also to Wembanyama, an absolute star in San Antonio’s win over Sacramento (116-96). The Spurs all-star dominated far and wide, ending the game with 34 points, 14 rebounds and also six assists. A constant and devastating presence in the middle of the court.

In the other games of the night, OKC è got rid of the LA Clippers (134-128, 45 points from a spectacular Gilgeous-Alexander) while New Orleans è was beaten by Brooklyn (107-105). Excellent and important win also by Houston: 107-92 against Washington.

Alexander Zverev-Andrey Rublev 6-4 6-4

Perfect debut for Alexander Zverev at the ATP Finals. The world number one, in fact, left no chance to Andrey Rublev, number 8 in the ATP ranking, defeated with a final score of 6-4 6-4, the same result with which the German beat the Russian a year ago also in Turin.

After the first six games in which both players conceded crumbs on serve, in the seventh came Zverev’s sudden break thanks to a few too many errors by Rublev. The world number two goes up 4-3 and keeps the lead until the final 6-4, sealed with a first-set winner.

Rublev also gets off to a strong start in the second set but is unable to trouble Zverev on serve. The balance holds until 4-4. Here the Russian stumbles into a lapse that costs him dearly: the German scratches the break (5-4) and closes the file on serve (6-4).

Thanks to this victory Zverev joins Casper Ruud at the top of the Newcombe round. The two will face each other on Wednesday for a spot in the semifinals, while Rublev will face Carlos Alcaraz in what will already be an inside-out challenge.