ATP Finals Day 1 as it happened- Nadal and Thiem start with wins
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Updated 15/11/2020 at 21:41 GMT
Follow our live updates from the 2020 ATP Finals, played at the O2 Arena for the last time this year. On day 1, Rafael Nadal beat debutant Andrey Rublev while Dominic Thiem edged Stefanos Tsitsipas in a repeat of the final last year.
Rafael Nadal
Image credit: Getty Images
GAME, SET AND MATCH! – NADAL 6-3 6-4 RUBLEV
The world number two gets his latest campaign for a maiden title at this event up and running with a very impressive straight sets victory over one of the year’s star performers. Rublev struggled to hit his best form as Nadal’s consistency and solid serving proved too good. The Spaniard gets over the line in one hour and 17 minutes, serving it out to 15.
NADAL 6-3 5-4 RUBLEV
Nadal looks for the early finish as he unloads a crosscourt forehand to make deuce. Rublev continues to battle hard and wriggles out of danger. He’s got one last look at that Nadal serve. Serve-out question posed.
NADAL 6-3 5-3 RUBLEV
The world number eight takes the first point but Nadal fires down his fastest serve of the evening in response and duly takes the next three points. Rublev’s body language is pretty poor. He hoists his racket over his head as the game goes against him. It's not been his night, but he'd be better off not showing his opponent his dismay.
NADAL 6-3 4-3 RUBLEV
Just when you think Rublev is down and out, he channels the anger in the right way. His serving has improved since going a set and break down. It may well be too late, but he at least keeps himself in it with a rampant love hold.
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Rafael Nadal
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NADAL 6-3 4-2 RUBLEV
Nadal maintains his consistency. He’s served well all night, but Rublev is emerging as his own worst enemy now. He remonstrates with himself once again as he flashes a return long. Game Nadal (for the loss of one point).
NADAL 6-3 3-2 RUBLEV
The Russian’s irritation is palpable. At 30-30 you sense he’s in danger of imploding, but finds a slither of his A-game at a really crucial moment to snare two well-constructed points and stay in contention. He needs much more of that if he's going to change the direction this match is going in though.
NADAL 6-3 3-1 RUBLEV
Nadal unloads the forehand up the line and crosscourt before more Rublev vents more frustration with another unforced error he really doesn’t like the look of.
NADAL 6-3 2-1 RUBLEV
More hand gestures from Rublev. This time it’s an expression suggesting ‘where’s that been for a set and a bit?’ He lands some huge serves to get on the board with a confidence-boosting hold to 15.
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Rafael Nadal is in control
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NADAL 6-3 2-0 RUBLEV
It’s not clear who is beating up Rublev the most; Rafa or himself. He continues to gesture and grunt in disapproval at both his shot selection and execution. He squanders an opportunity to bite back from 0-30 and can’t apply any significant heat from deuce. Nadal prevails and backs up the break.
BREAK! – NADAL 6-3 1-0 RUBLEV
That’s a disaster for Rublev. A poor drop volley and a double fault gift Nadal double break point. The Russian saves both but then narrowly misses with a crosscourt backhand. Rafa makes it third time lucky with a sharp return that catches Rublev out of position and he can only slap tamely into the net.
SET! - NADAL 6-3 RUBLEV
That’s a wonderful opening set from Nadal. His serving was quite majestic and it didn’t falter looking to see it out. He cruises to the game to love to take Set 1 in 37 minutes.
NADAL 5-3 RUBLEV
A much-needed hold for Rublev and a very convincing one too. Nadal offers little resistance as the 23-year-old chalks up the game to love.
NADAL 5-2 RUBLEV
A stunning return winner on the stretch helps Rublev apply the first bit of pressure on the Nadal serve. He makes deuce from 40-15 down but then misses an opening with a backhand down the line. A big serve helps Nadal consolidate and he’s one away from taking the opener.
BREAK! - NADAL 4-2 RUBLEV
Rafa ups the ante and makes the breakthrough. The Spaniard makes deuce with a sweeping crosscourt backhand before unloading the forehand. He has two break opportunities and snares the break on the second when Rublev’s forehand clips the net and flies just long. Cue a mini tantrum from the Russian as he throws his racket to the floor.
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Rafael Nadal (ATP Finals 2020)
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NADAL 3-2 RUBLEV
Nadal continues to cruise on serve. The only blot on his copybook comes when he misses a rare and surprising forehand from mid-court and queries the call. The umpire nods that it was out and Rafa promptly dusts himself down and lands a big first serve that Rublev returns long.
NADAL 2-2 RUBLEV
That’s more like it from Andrey. He bullets down a first-serve winner to conclude a solid hold to 15.
NADAL 2-1 RUBLEV
In contrast, Nadal’s one-two punch and some hefty serving sees him breeze to a love hold. Impressive stuff from the Spaniard so far.
NADAL 1-1 RUBLEV
It’s a mixed bag from Rublev and he’ll want to get the first serve flowing better than that. Nadal pushes at 30-30 but then frets as his radar is slightly off on his next two drives to the baseline. Rublev is on the board.
NADAL 1-0 RUBLEV.
A typically business-like approach from Nadal. He marauds to a very simple hold to 15 as Rublev thaws potential tightness out of his limbs.
Nadal wins the toss
The Spaniard chooses to serve first. Time for the warm up.
VIDEO: Now or never for Nadal?
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Tennis Legends: Why hasn't Rafael Nadal won the ATP Finals?
GB joy in the doubles
Head-to-head
Nadal leads the match-up 1-0 having triumphed 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 at the 2017 US Open.
Nadal v Rublev coming up
World number two, Rafael Nadal gets his latest bid to end his World Tour finals hoodoo with an opening Group London 2020 match against Andrey Rublev. The 23-year-old Russian is making his maiden appearance at the finals having racked up five titles this year. He boasts a 40-8 record for the season. Nadal is 25-5 with two titles to his name. The players are due on court from 20:00 GMT.
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Andrey Rublev, Rafael Nadal
Image credit: Getty Images
GAME, SET AND MATCH! –– TSITSIPAS 6-7 6-4 3-6 THIEM
Thiem holds his nerve, serving out to 15 to defeat the defending champion and get off to a winning start in Group London 2020. The Austrian edges it in two hours and 18 minutes.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 6-4 3-5 THIEM
Tsitsipas poses the serve-out question and gives himself one last chance to turn this around. He wobbles with a double fault for 30-30 but is brave at the net and digs out the hold.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 6-4 2-5 THIEM
No real pressure there. Thiem produces some sizzling serves to rattle through. He’s one away from an opening day win at these finals.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 6-4 2-4 THIEM
No such drama for Tsitsipas, who knows he can’t afford any further lapse on serve. He cruises to a hold to 15, but must be bold and mix it up on his return game urgently if he’s to turn the tide in this final set.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 6-4 1-4 THIEM
What a hold that could well prove to be. The Austrian drills a backhand just long and finds himself 30-40 down. He makes deuce but then repeats the trick. Tsitsipas howls in dismay as he fails to make it count at the second attempt on BP and the pair exchange blows at deuce on six occasions before Thiem prevails.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 6-4 1-3 THIEM
Just what the doctor ordered! Tsitsipas gets on the board with a thumping love hold.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 6-4 0-3 THIEM
Lots of fist pumping from Thiem. He’s found that extra gear at a key point in this contest. He consolidates to love and the reigning champion must somehow pull himself off the ropes once again.
BREAK! – TSITSIPAS 6-7 6-4 0-2 THIEM
What a response to losing that second set! Thiem finally makes some inroads on the Greek’s serve and conjures up one of his best pints of the match, finishing off the break opportunity with a delightful, deft touch at the net.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 6-4 0-1 THIEM
The world number three gets off to a super start in the decider. Tsitsipas has had great success with his advances into the net, but Thiem outfoxes him in this game, gliding a lovely backhand winner up the line. The Austrian slams down a big serve to finish and open with a hold to 15.
SET! – TSITSIPAS 6-7 6-4 THIEM
All square! Thiem comes out all guns blazing and pumps his fist after nailing a forehand winner to snare the opening point. However, Tsitsipas remains unfazed and draws the errors out of the Austrian to ease through four points in a row and deservedly take the set.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 5-4 THIEM
Given the calibre of serving today, no surprise to see the serve-out question posed.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 5-3 THIEM
The young Greek swats away a weak attempt at a lob with a comprehensive smash to saunter to a love hold. He’s one away from taking us to a decider.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 4-3 THIEM
Dominic has certainly rediscovered his serving mojo too. After a dip in the first two games in this set, he’s cranked it up a notch. A delicious drop shot helps him along to a simple enough hold.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 4-2 THIEM
The defending champion has had excellent rhythm on serve today. He refuses to give Thiem any hope with a hold to 15. Still a tough match to call.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 3-2 THIEM
That blow has re-focused Thiem. He surges to a hold to 15 to stay in touch.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 3-1 THIEM
The No.6 seed consolidates the break with a hold from deuce after a weak volley for 15-30 had left him with plenty of work to do.
BREAK! – TSITSIPAS 6-7 2-1 THIEM
There is a lull from Thiem – and Stef takes full advantage! He saves one break point with an ace at 15-40, but then makes an ill-advised move to the net off a short forehand and Tsitsipas is able to cork a wrong-footing pass up his left flank.
TSITSIPAS 6-7 1-1 THIEM
The Dominator tries to make an early move to take a firm grip of this match ,but Tsitsipas responds to dropping the first point on serve with more clutch work to reel off four in a row. He’s not lost any belief despite letting his advantage in the tie break flitter away.
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Dominic Thiem of Austria in action during his round robin match against Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece during their first round robin match on Day one of the Nitto ATP World Tour Finals at The O2 Arena
Image credit: Getty Images
TSITSIPAS 6-7 0-1 THIEM
Psychologically, that’s a big hold for Thiem. A flat crosscourt forehand threatens to derail his hard-work from the opener, but he rallies from 0-30. Tsitsipas presses again from deuce, but the Austrian does enough to earn the scoreboard advantage in Set 2.
SET! – TSITSIPAS 6-7 THIEM.
What a turnaround! Thiem covers an incredible amount of court to drag himself back with a break at 5-3. He serves big to edge in front and then takes advantage of some poor decision-making from his opponent to lure a lob error long. The Austrian takes the opener 7-5 in the TB after a very tight 56 minutes of tennis.
Tie-Break Latest
Thiem misses a make-able forehand to cough up the mini break at 2-1. A pair of sizzling serves put Tsitsipas firmly in control and he leads at the change over by a 4-2 scoreline.
TSITSIPAS 6-6 THIEM
Stefanos tries to step up his return game and wins one of the points of the set to make 15-15. Thiem stays calm and focused, executing a delightful volley at the net before an emphatic smash secures a tie break.
TSITSIPAS 6-5 THIEM
That’s supreme under pressure. The young Greek concludes a love hold of his own with an ace down the middle T.
TSITSIPAS 5-5 THIEM
No chance of that it seems. Thiem ruthlessly powers to a love hold to level once more. Are we destined for a tie break?
TSITSIPAS 5-4 THIEM
Tsitsipas has been serving well in this match and yet Thiem has had some openings. Not on this occasion though. The Greek races to a convincing hold to 15. Thiem can’t afford to blink on his own serve now.
TSITSIPAS 4-4 THIEM
Too good from Domi. He marauds to a love hold with some big serves and a flurry of crunching forehands doing lots of the heavy lifting.
TSITSIPAS 4-3 THIEM
Clutch serving from Tsitsipas. He rallies from 15-40 to reel off four points in a row and maintain that scoreboard advantage as we enter the business end of this opening set. Thiem will be frustrated. He’s had a couple of half chances now, but not been able to get his teeth in to them.
TSITSIPAS 3-3 THIEM
A mixed bag from Thiem at the net as he caresses a lovely volley to earn game point before leaving plenty of bounce on another foray to the net to allow Tsitispas to sweep a winner. The Greek has a glimmer of a chance to make deuce with a shot up the line but can only guide it just wide on the stretch. All square.
TSITSIPAS 3-2 THIEM
That was a much more accomplished service game from the Greek. He charges through a one-sided love hold after Thiem had made him work much harder for his first couple of holds.
TSITSIPAS 2-2 THIEM
Some staunch defence helps Stefanos earn his first look-in from deuce, but Thiem slams the door shut and finishes with a fizzing ace to reach parity once more. This cagey stuff so far. Hard to suggest anyone has the edge at this point.
TSITSIPAS 2-1 THIEM
The US Open champion conjures up the first break point opportunity of the match but sees a blockbusting backhand attempt up the line slap into the net. Tsitsipas had been brave with a drive volley from mid-court and uses some positive advances into the net to get the job done and keep his nose in front early on.
TSITSIPAS 1-1 THIEM
The Dominator responds with a quickfire hold for the loss of one point to get on the board. Lots of big-hitting from the baseline as expected.
TSITSIPAS 1-0 THIEM
Plenty of duels with the one-handed backhands. Thiem wins the first after a pulsating opening point, but in the end it’s Tsitsipas who digs out a solid hold to 30 to kick things off.
Thiem wins the toss
The Austrian opts to receive first. Time for a warm up before we get underway.
Djokovic has just lifted the year-end No.1 trophy and spoke of mixed emotions given the issues the world has suffered due to the virus this year. He praised his team for their support in helping him secure the spot as best player of the planet for 2020. He’s all smiles as the media take photos of him cuddling the trophy. Next up, it's time for the action as Tsitsipas and Thiem take to the court.
Year-end No.1
A certain Mr Novak Djokovic will be on court shortly - but not to perform today. He will be receiving his trophy for finishing as world number one in 2020. It is a record-equalling sixth time the Serb has achieved the feat.
View(s) from the baseline
Thiem: “In most of the other tournaments you at least have a little bit of time to get in shape, to get used to the conditions. But here it starts 100 per cent from the first point. It’s only matches between Top 10 players. This year all eight players are in good form, everybody is healthy as well because the season was not too long.”
Tsitsipas on Thiem: “We are good friends, on and off the court. He has contributed a lot to my success, and he has inspired me in many ways.”
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Thiem leads the match-up 4-3, but did lose last year’s final to the Greek in a final set tie break. Thiem is 3-2 up on all encounters on hard but 1-0 down on indoor hard.
Next up - Tsitsipas v Thiem.
The time is upon us for some live updates from the opening match at this year's ATP finals. It's a repeat of last year's final with Tsitsipas taking on the 2020 US Open champion, Thiem.
Who is playing?
Coming up on day one of the 2020 ATP Finals, defending champion Stefanos Tsitsipas takes on Dominic Thiem from 14:00 UK time, then in the evening Rafael Nadal faces Andrey Rublev from 20:00.
The eight singles players competing at this year’s ATP Finals will be Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem, Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev, Andrey Rublev and Diego Schwartzman.
This year qualification is based on the ATP rankings (excluding points gained at last year’s ATP Finals) rather than a ‘Race to London’ ranking due to the disrupted season.
Tsitsipas is the defending champion after beating Thiem in the 2019 final. However, the Greek has been battling a leg injury that could impact his chances in London.
Thiem also struggled with blisters during the Vienna Open last month while Nadal and Djokovic have suffered surprise defeats in their most recent outings.
What’s the schedule?
The tournament at London's O2 Arena runs from November 15 to November 22, with the group-stage draw taking place on November 12.
There will be two singles matches played every day before the semi-finals on Saturday, November 21 and the final on Sunday, November 22.
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What are the groups?
Group Tokyo 1970
- Novak Djokovic
- Daniil Medvedev
- Alexander Zverev
- Diego Schwartzman
Group London 2020
- Rafael Nadal
- Dominic Thiem
- Stefanos Tsitsipas
- Andrey Rublev
What’s the format?
The eight singles players are divided into two four-player groups, with each player facing their three group rivals and the top two from each group advancing to the semi-finals. Standings are determined by number of wins and if players are tied then it is decided on by their head-to-head record.
Rublev, who has won five titles in 2020, and Schwartzman, will be competing at the finals for the first time. There will be four players aged 24 and under for the second straight year.
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