ATP World Tour Finals Predictions

The stage is set for 8 days of spectacular tennis as the top 8 players of the year battle it out to win the final tournament of the year, the ATP World Tour Finals. It is an honour for any player to join this elite group, but to be crowned the champion is cementing your place in history.

The top 8 players, in accordance with the custom, were drawn into two groups of four on Thursday. The first group:

The Stan Smith group comprises of 10 ATP World Tour Finals, as world number 1, Novak Djokovic; and 6 time champion of the tournament, Roger Federer are drawn in the same group. Tomas Berdych will join them as he makes his 6th appearance at the tournament, along with the Japanese sensation, Kei Nishikori, who qualified for the second consecutive year.

Three time defending champion, Djokovic, has been in the form of his life this year. The Belgrade native created history by winning 6 of the 9 masters titles in 2015. He comes into the tournament on a 22 match winning streak winning four straight titles at the U.S. Open, Beijing, Shanghai and Paris. It will take a bold man to predict Djokovic failing to reach the final four stage.

Roger Federer has enjoyed his share of success this year, with his recent title coming at Basel, winning against his arch-rival Rafael Nadal. The Swiss maestro made it to two Grand Slam finals- Wimbledon and U.S. Open- losing to Djokovic on both the occasions. Roger must be confident about his chances of a final four place as he leads 14-6 and 3-2 in head to head battle against Berdych and Nishikori respectively.

Prediction: Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer qualify as number 1 and 2 respectively

 The second group features:

Andy Murray, who qualified for the prestigious tournament for the seventh time, will bid to secure the year end number 2 ranking for the first time in his career. With Davis Cup finals in less than a weeks time after the World Tour Finals, the Scot will be under immense pressure. Two of the biggest moments of his career come back to back, and more importantly, on two very different playing surfaces- indoor hard court and clay court. However, with home crowd and loads of experience, Andy will look to book a place in the final 4 stages of the World Tour Finals.

Rafael Nadal is on course of a dramatic comeback. The Spaniard produced a string of good results in past two months to secure his place in the top 8. He is currently ranked number 5 in the world and boasts a positive head to head record against all other members of the group. With no Grand Slam title to his name this year, Nadal will look to collect the World Tour Finals title and finish the year on a high.

Stan Wawrinka is the French Open Champion and the only player to beat Novak Djokovic in Grand Slams this year. However, the Swiss number 2 can be inconsistent at times. Will the wear and tear of playing at the highest level all year cause him to stumble and fall at the World Tour Finals ?

David Ferrer failed to qualify for the tournament last year but played one match as a replacement for the injured Milos Raonic. This year, however, the Spaniard finished in top 8 in the race to London and is back to play at least the three round robin matches if not more. He won 5 titles this year but winning against the top 8 players back to back may seem like a daunting task.

Prediction: Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal qualify as number 1 and 2 respectively

If all goes as stated above, then the semi-finals will feature,

Novak Djokovic Vs Rafael Nadal

and

Roger Federer Vs Andy Murray

Prediction: Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer win their matches 

If these results do turn out to be true, then we will see the unstoppable Novak Djokovic and the evergreen Roger Federer take on each other for the 43rd time in their career. They are tied in the head to head battle with 21 victories each but Djokovic has won 4 of their 6 encounters this year. With Djokovic beating every other player this year in almost every department of the game, he will be the favourite to finish his dominant run this season with the World Tour Finals title.

Prediction: Novak Djokovic Champion