“I just try to play the best,” said a confident Jannik Sinner ahead of his much-anticipated title clash with Taylor Fritz in Turin on Sunday. There’s a lot going on in favor of the World No.1 and two-time Grand Slam champion right now. Throughout the event, he’s remained invincible. On top of it, his impressive singles match record of 69-6 in 2024 is something to marvel at. But now, the Fox has a shot at equaling a rare, 38-year-old ATP Finals record. But he’s got one man standing in his way – Taylor Fritz.

In more than 50 years of the ATP Finals Masters event, there’s been only one player who has won the season finale without dropping a single set throughout the tournament. Ivan Lendl, the former Czech-American great, did it twice in the year 1986 when he didn’t lose any set in any match and went on to win the trophy.

Back in the day, the event was known as Nabisco Masters and used to take place two times a year – January and December. On both occasions, Lendl succeeded in winning the trophy without giving away a set throughout the event. Since then, no one has come close to this record in any subsequent edition of the ATP Finals. Not even Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, or Novak Djokovic – the Big 3 – have been able to pull it off. However, Jannik Sinner has a clear chance of repeating in Turin what Lendl did 38 years ago.

For those unaware, the Fox has played 8 sets in the event so far and he’s won all of them. He didn’t concede any set in the group stage and the semifinal. If he wins the final today without losing a set, he will become only the second player after Lendl to lift the ATP Finals trophy without losing a set. But Taylor Fritz can stop him from achieving this rare milestone. The task is simple for him – snatch a set (and the match) from Sinner.

Jannik Sinner vs Taylor Fritz: Who will emerge victorious?

Speaking of the title clash itself, the odds are currently tilting in favor of the Fox. Reason? Well, he’s got a fantastic H2H record against Fritz. Both of them have played each other four times, going into the final, with the Italian leading the tally 3-1. Not to mention that Sinner has already defeated Fritz twice this year. He did it during the US Open final back in September. At the Flushing Meadows, Sinner got the better of Taylor and lifted the trophy with a scoreline of 6-3, 6-4, 7-5.

The two met recently during the ATP Finals event itself. In a group stage encounter, earlier this week on Wednesday, Jannik beat Fritz easily in straight sets and took the match 6-4, 6-4. All things considered, the momentum is with the Fox who’s appearing to be indomitable – at least right now. Talor Fritz will have to play the best tennis of his life on Sunday if he wants to pull off a miraculous victory.

But then again, it’s a sport at the end of the day and anything can happen. It will be interesting to see how the final shapes up in Turin today. Do you think the World No.1 will lift the ATP Finals trophy or Fritz will be able to pull off a shocking result? Let us know in the comments below.