The schedule for the opening two days of the ATP Finals in Turin has been revealed and organisers have been forced to change the format due to what has become a logistical challenge.
Traditionally, the players in each of the groups will compete on the same day, ensuring all of them have a similar period of rest between matches, but that plan has been thrown into chaos due to a couple of outstanding issues.
Novak Djokovic’s refusal to confirm whether he will play at the ATP Finals combined with his decision to play in the ATP 250 event in Athens that is owned by members of his family has thrown a huge slice of confusion into the mix ahead of the ATP’s marquee event.
Djokovic qualified for the ATP Finals comfortably despite playing a limited tournament schedule in 2025, but he pulled out of the event last year, citing an injury concern amid some suggestions that he was no longer motivated to play in a tournament he has won a record seven times.
The question marks over Djokovic’s participation forced Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti to compete in the Athens event, as he chased the ranking points he needed to reach the ATP Finals.
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Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime has also been in limbo, as he has headed to Turin unsure whether he will play in the tournament, with Musetti trying to beat him to the final qualifying spot.
That meant the official launch event for the Turin tournament saw only six players present, with defending champion Jannik Sinner joined by Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev, Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton and Alex de Minaur.
That was not an ideal scenario for ATP Tour chiefs who build so much of their year around this event and they have already ensured they will have all eight players present in future years by confirming the race to qualify for the ATP Finals will end after the Paris Masters, a full week before the start of the Turin event.
The challenge for the organisers of the ATP Finals was finding a way to plan their event even though they don’t know who will be playing.
They also had to ensure Djokovic and Musetti were not playing on Sunday, as they will still be in Greece until late on Saturday evening playing their Athens final.
So ATP Finals organisers have been forced to tweak their plans, with players from both groups in action on the opening Sunday.
Alcaraz will play De Minaur in the opening match from the Jimmy Connors Group, before Zverev and Ben Shelton take to the court on Sunday evening in the Bjorn Borg Group.
Djokovic will play Fritz on Monday afternoon if he chooses to play, with Sinner given the primetime slot on Monday evening against either his compatriot Musetti or Auger-Aliassime.
This is not an ideal scenario and Djokovic can take much of the blame for the confusion, as Musetti and Auger-Aliassime would have known their fate if the Serbian was more open about his plans to play in Turin.
The end result is a schedule that may hamper Sinner, as he will need to play on Friday, Saturday and Sunday if he reaches the final.
Meanwhile, Alcaraz and the other players competing on Sunday are likely to get a day off ahead of the semi-finals on Saturday.
The total prize money for the 2025 ATP Finals is a stunning $15.5million, with the champion scooping $5.1million if they stay unbeaten, as Sinner did in 2024.
ORDER OF PLAY – SUNDAY, 9 NOVEMBER 2025
INALPI ARENA start 11:30 am
Not Before 2 pm
[1] Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) vs [7] Alex de Minaur (AUS)
Not Before 8:30 pm
[3] Alexander Zverev (GER) vs [5] Ben Shelton (USA)
ORDER OF PLAY – MONDAY, 10 NOVEMBER 2025
INALPI ARENA start 11:30 am
[4] Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs [6] Taylor Fritz (USA)
Not Before 6 pm
[2] Jannik Sinner (ITA) vs [8] Felix Auger-Aliassime or Lorenzo Musetti
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