Jannik Sinner doubled his lead and retained the ATP Finals title. He's the Maestro, having defeated Carlos Alcaraz in the final 7-6, 7-5.
The first set ended in a tie-break with a point-for-point clash, even though the world number one had complained of a thigh problem that required the intervention of a physiotherapist on the court.
"An incredible season," Jannik commented after the match, "maybe even better this time than last year. Winning in front of an Italian crowd was fantastic."
"I'm leaving the court with my head held high. I'm truly happy with the level I played on the court against a player who hasn't lost a match on an indoor court in two years. After every defeat, Jannik always comes back stronger, congratulations," Carlos Alcaraz said in a textbook statement of fair play. "Now it's time for the break, prepare well for next year because I'm preparing well for next year too," Alcaraz joked. Then the Spaniard thanked "the Turin crowd, who obviously cheered a little more for Jannik, but you never disrespected me."
The setback
The match was interrupted for a long time, about 12 minutes, with the score tied at 40-all in the fourth game, with the score 2-1 in favor of Alcaraz and the South Tyrolean serving due to a spectator's sudden illness. The interruption was necessary for emergency medical services to arrive, but ultimately nothing serious was reported.
The precedents of 2025
Not counting the million-dollar performance in Riyadh, the one at the Inalpi Arena in front of 13,000 spectators (and millions of television viewers worldwide) was the sixth final of the season between the two champions.
The Murcian had won four. Jannik's heaviest defeat had been in New York. It was then that he decided he needed to work even harder on his serve.
2025 had brought eight titles to Alcaraz's trophy cabinet so far, but at the Grand Slams, the masters of modern tennis were perfectly even. This year, Sinner had won the Australian Open and Wimbledon, while Alcaraz had won the French Open and, of course, the US Open.
Binaghi's press conference
Angelo Binaghi, president of the Italian Tennis Federation (FITP), also held a press conference today. He presented data that confirms the tournament's success, partly to emphasize the event's strong performance and the growth of tennis, but also to convey a warning to the public, particularly the government: the future of the ATP Finals will depend heavily on the impact of the sports decree passed this summer on the tournament.
At the tournament's final press conference, where everyone seemed to agree on Turin's merit, this leitmotif resonated from many quarters, from the words of President Binaghi to those of the institutions, the City and the Region. "This week's topic was to do well in this edition," said Binaghi, "and starting tomorrow, a second phase begins, which will involve continuing to hold them in Turin for a year, but at the same time beginning a dialogue, primarily with the Government, to understand the applicability of the new law to the Finals over the next five years. All other decisions will be made based on that, keeping in mind that they are an asset of the ATP, that they are under concession to the FITP for five years, and therefore the decision on where to hold them in Italy will be a joint decision."
The federal president reminds us that "the event isn't ours, but the ATP's. We are naturally interested in making it an increasingly better vehicle for the development of tennis in Italy, and the ATP, even more than us, is interested in ensuring that the value and awareness of the Finals can be developed in the best possible way." When asked about the logistics of who could win the Turin-Milan matchup , he quips: "I'm not prepared," he says, "because, for example, I've never seen or even know where the new Milan arena is. I consider Turin my second home; after five years, I know practically everything."
With numbers in hand, Binaghi then touts the event's success, with 230,000 attendees, an economic impact of €591 million, and additional revenue of €92.3 million, nearly seven times the state's investment. But also the success of tennis, which, along with padel, he emphasizes, "is the second sport in terms of number of players and enthusiasts and is increasingly approaching soccer." This is another reference to the government, which, according to the FITP president , "should understand that, in sports, tennis is the best investment it could make. But you'll tell me that after you've studied the America's Cup, the Olympics, or even the Mediterranean Games this year, which require a greater investment than the Finals." The issue of contributions, Binaghi extends to soccer as well. "I," he states, "am in favor of a system that rewards results; the Italian system is still overwhelmingly based on contributions that don't take sporting results into account. Perhaps the tennis results,” he concludes, “help us say that there could exist, even in Italian sport, a development model different from the one applied today, one that rewards efficiency and merit and not welfare.”
(Unioneonline/E.Fr.)