Novak Djokovic on the brink of a huge boost in bid to qualify for ATP Finals
Novak Djokovic has been chasing the big money by appearing at the Six Kings Slam exhibition event in Saudi Arabia over the last few days, but he has been given some big boosts in his bid to qualify for next month’s ATP Finals.
The 24-time Grand Slam-winning legend has insisted he is not focused on qualification for Turin this year, as his focus on the final phase of his career is trying to add to his collection of major titles and a push to guide Serbia to glory in the 2025 Davis Cup Finals in Malaga.
After playing for his country in the Davis Cup last month, Djokovic offered up these comments as he appeared to suggest he was not push confirmed playing in the ATP Finals in Turin was not a priority at this late stage in his career.
The top eight players in the calendar year qualify for the ATP Final and Djokovic was well off the pace in the race to qualify for Turin a few weeks ago.
That may have been one of the reasons why he offered up these comments after playing for Serbia in the Davis Cup last month.
“Torino is not my goal at all, to be honest, I am not chasing ATP Finals, I am not chasing the rankings,” he said.
“As far as I am concerned, I am done with those tournaments for my career. Whether I will play in other tournaments this year or in the future, I can’t say right now.
“My main priorities are playing for the national team and slams, everything else is less important.”
Djokovic may not be focused on defending the ATP Finals title he won by beating Jannik Sinner in last year’s Final in Turin, but he is now in a strong position to qualify for the tournament once again.
The Serbian’s run to the final of the ATP 1000 tournament in Shanghai saw him move up to No 6 in the ATP Race standings, with te players behind him doing little to boost their chances of sealing the top eight finish they need to qualify for Turin in the last week.
Andrey Rublev, Casper Ruud and Alex de Minaur are the players immediately behind Djokovic in the ATP Race standings and all three failed to claim the points they needed in last week’s tour events.
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It means the trio have not dented Djokovic’s hopes of playing in Turin, but they will have another chance to get closer to him in the rankings over the next few days.
De Minaur is the No 2 seed in an ATP 500 event in Vienna and he will face a match against experienced German Jan-Lennard Struff in the first round.
The Vienna tournament will see the return of Germany’s Alexander Zverev as the top side after he took some time away from the game and missed some tournaments on the Asian swing of the season.
Meanwhile, in Basel, top seed Rublev could face a battle with No 2 seed Ruud that may be crucial for both as they look to make the final eight and qualify for the ATP Finals.
Rublev has been drawn against Portugal’s Nuno Borges in the first round in Switzerland, with Rudd taking on veteran Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut in his opening match.
The Paris Masters looks set to decide the final places in the ATP Finals when that tournament gets underway at the end of October and by then, Djokovic may already be close to securing his place in Turin.
With niggling injuries affecting the veteran champion both in Shanghai and in his matches at the Six Kings Slam, Djokovic may be keen to skip the Paris Masters if he doesn’t need any more ranking points to get to Turin and that may now be an option for him.
It says much about Djokovic’s enduring brilliance that even in a season when he has served up his worst results, he is still in pole position to qualify for the ATP Finals.
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