Veterans, breakout stars join the race for the ATP Finals

With the ATP Finals just over six weeks away, the race to see who will make up the field of eight at the year-end championships is heating up. Already, four spots have been clinched by 2019’s Grand Slam champions Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic; Wimbledon finalist Roger Federer; and US Open runner-up Daniil Medvedev, who will be making his debut at the tournament.

Dominic Thiem and Stefanos Tsitsipas—a veteran of the event and a prospective newcomer, respectively—are in a solid position to join the field and represent the group of players trying to join the competition at the O2 Arena in London.

Here’s a look at six of the hopefuls and their prospects.

Roberto Bautista Agut

Current Race Position: 7

Long recognized as one of the most consistent players on the ATP Tour, the Spaniard has taken tremendous strides forward in 2019. After nine previous appearances in the round of 16 at a Grand Slam, Bautista Agut finally made it past that hurdle at the Australian Open this year, when he reached the quarterfinals.

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The 31-year-old went a step further at Wimbledon by advancing to the semifinals, where Djokovic stopped him in the penultimate round, avenging two losses to him already in the season. Shortly after that, he cracked the top 10 of the rankings for the first time. At his best on hard courts, Bautista Agut could solidify his place in the race standings—and notch one more breakthrough for the year.

Matteo Berrettini

Current Race Position: 8

Like his countryman Fabio Fognini, Berrettini is having a career-best campaign. The Italian, only 23, has proven that his game transitions well to any surface. Earlier in the summer, he had a nine-match winning streak on clay as he took the title in Hungary, then reached the final in Munich, Germany, a week later. During the grass-court season, he won his third career title in Stuttgart and reached the round of 16 at Wimbledon.

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Berrettini didn’t play much leading up to the US Open, but it appeared that was no matter as he advanced to the semifinals, becoming the first Italian to get that far in New York in more than 40 years. A candidate for Most Improved Player, he won’t be able to sneak up on anyone as he tries to power his way to the field in London.

Gael Monfils

Current Race Position: 12

Having turned pro back in 2004, Monfils didn’t make his first—and, to date, lone—appearance at the ATP Finals until 2016, the same year he reached the US Open semifinals and finished in the top 10 of the rankings for the first time. This year got off to a promising start for the Frenchman as won his eighth career title at the indoor event in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

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That final, reached back in February, has been his lone championship appearance to date in 2019 as injuries—long a problem—hindered his results for much of the season. Monfils did reach the quarterfinals of the US Open, where he lost to Berrettini in a fifth-set tiebreak. He’s through to the quarterfinals this week in Zhuhai, China, and is well positioned to go further as he looks to help his cause.

Diego Schwartzman

Current Race Position: 14

Argentina’s No. 1 player has had another consistent season by his standards with some notable achievements mixed in: Schwartzman claimed his first career singles title on hard courts in Los Cabos, Mexico, during the summer and soon followed that up with a run to the final eight at the US Open. On the clay, the 27-year-old advanced to his first Masters 1000 semifinal in Rome, where he defeated Kei Nishikori in the quarters before Djokovic halted his run.

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One of the best returners on the ATP Tour, he’s able to use that aspect of his game, his groundstrokes and athleticism to fend off players who, at first glance, it seems would be able to overpower him. He’ll need all of the tools at his disposal to fight through a crowded field in the race for London.

Stan Wawrinka

Current Race Position: 15

When Monfils won the Rotterdam title back in February, much of the news around that result centered around who he defeated in the final: Wawrinka, who was contesting his first championship match since the 2017 French Open. Shortly after that run in Paris, the three-time Grand Slam winner was sent to the sidelines with a knee injury. His comeback, at the age of 34, has been an impressive one as he also advanced to the quarterfinals at the French and US Opens this year.

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A three-time semifinalist in London, Wawrinka is in a position he hasn’t been for in some time—that of a player trying to qualify for the tournament. An appearance there would be the perfect capper in this successful comeback campaign.

Felix Auger-Aliassime

Current Race Position: 16

The youngest player in the top 100 of the rankings got off to a strong start in 2019 that few could have predicted. He reached two clay-court finals before the French Open, and also advanced to the semifinals at the Miami Masters. Displaying a level of versatility rarely seen in such a young player, the Canadian also made a third final of the year, this time on grass in Stuttgart, where he lost to Berrettini.

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He’s slowed down the past month and a half, and actually just dropped his opening match in Chengdu, China, this week. However, if he could recapture some of that early-season magic, he could find himself in a position where he’d be bypassing the NextGen Finals for the main event at the O2 Arena.