Two days are in the books at the tournament, and that means both Groups have had the first two matches of six completed.
Things will really begin to take shape as far as the Semi Final line up is concerned over the next couple of days with at least two of those places expected to be taken. An eight man line up could be down to just six players depending on the results and the pressures certainly ramp up from here with the World Tour Finals hitting the midway mark of the event.
Holger Rune - 1.5 games v Stefanos Tsitsipas: On most occasions the defeats suffered a couple of days ago would have meant Holger Rune and Stefanos Tsitsipas would have been leaving Turin. At the World Tour Finals, the two players do have another shot to recover from the losses on Sunday, although this time they will both know that another defeat is likely going to mean the end of their tournament.
The other match in the Group will determine what hopes the losing player will have on Tuesday, but both Holger Rune and Stefanos Tsitsipas have to be only focusing on trying to bounce back from their opening defeats.
Out of the two players, Holger Rune will be a little more disappointed that he was not quite able to get over the line in a very tight match against Novak Djokovic. You do have to wonder how much that match has taken out of the young Dane considering it lasted over three hours and there was plenty of emotional and physical effort expended on the day.
Stefanos Tsitsipas has a slightly different situation.
He was well beaten by Jannik Sinner, but spent less than an hour and a half on the court and Tsitsipas will feel he can only be better in this second Group match. While the move to Turin from London for the World Tour Finals has not been the best news for Stefanos Tsitsipas, he will feel he has been slightly more consistent on the hard courts compared with Holger Rune in 2023 and will be hoping that can show up in this match.
However, Stefanos Tsitsipas has really struggled when it comes to facing top 10 Ranked opponents on the surface and that was evident again on Sunday. Holger Rune has not been much better considering he has a 0-4 record against top 10 Ranked opponents on the hard courts this season, but the Dane has been a stronger return player than Stefanos Tsitsipas and that may make the difference in this important match.
Holger Rune will also have a mental edge over Stefanos Tsitsipas having beaten him in both previous matches, although the last of those came thirteen months ago. In those previous matches, the relatively weak return game produced by Tsitsipas has been shown up and Holger Rune can make sure that happens again, even in the early slot given to this match.
You have to respect the fact that Stefanos Tsitsipas can be a very strong server when playing his best tennis and that may give him the chance for the upset, but he has not enjoyed his time in the World Tour Finals since winning the tournament in 2021 and Holger Rune can do just enough to keep his hopes alive of progressing into the Semi Final.
Novak Djokovic-Jannik Sinner over 22.5 games: There would not be too many surprised faces if this is the first of two matches that Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner have to play against one another before we get to the conclusion of the 2023 season.
Both of these players have been in very good form since the end of the US Open and, in Novak Djokovic's case, even longer, and the victories earned on Sunday means both Djokovic and Jannik Sinner are favourites to reach the Semi Final. Following Carlos Alcaraz's defeat on Tuesday, if both Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner are to reach the Semi Final, they are likely to be big favourites to make the Final and produce that potential rematch.
At this stage of the tournament it would be foolish to think too far ahead and both of these players will simply be focusing on securing a win that would likely take them through to the next Round.
Jannik Sinner was the more impressive winner on Sunday as he dominated behind serve and created the opportunities to break Stefanos Tsitsipas twice on his way to a comfortable straight sets win. For Novak Djokovic it was much tougher all around after needing three sets to beat Holger Rune in a match that lasted over three hours, although the confidence will remain high for the confirmed End of Year World Number 1 after continuing his winning streak that began after the Wimbledon Final in July.
During the run to the Wimbledon Final, Novak Djokovic beat Jannik Sinner in straight sets, although the match was incredibly more competitive than the scoreline would suggest.
It does mean Novak Djokovic has won all three previous meetings against Sinner, and it will be a challenge for the home player to find a way to close that gap. He will need to serve well to at least push Novak Djokovic back and perhaps build some scoreboard pressure, although Jannik Sinner will also feel the pressure of trying to beat arguably the best player of all time for the first time.
This is just the eighth match Novak Djokovic will have played since winning the US Open, but four of the previous seven have needed a deciding set.
In these conditions, you have to expect another tight, competitive match and this time Jannik Sinner may be able to do enough to at least win a set, even if he cannot quite manage the match.
A couple of days ago, the selection was for Novak Djokovic and Holger Rune to surpass the total games line and the feeling is that this one will go the same way. Both of these players have returned well enough on the hard courts, but there should be plenty of big-serving on display too and we should get to at least one tie-breaker, which should put the match in a position where they can play at least twenty-three games, even in a straight sets win for either player.
MY PICKS: Holger Rune - 1.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (2 Units)
Novak Djokovic-Jannik Sinner Over 22.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet Victor (2 Units)
World Tour Finals Update: 3-1, + 2.78 Units (8 Units Staked, + 34.75% Yield)
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