On Saturday evening, Carlos Alcaraz defeated 25-year-old Canadian star Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-2, 6-4 in the semi-finals of the ATP Finals.
Alcaraz will now contest a sixth match against Jannik Sinner this year when he plays the Italian in the Turin final.
Regarding Sinner, Alcaraz has dominated his matchups against the Italian in recent memory, winning four of their five ATP Tour matches this year.
In fact, Alcaraz has won seven of his last eight ATP Tour matches against Sinner – most recently in the US Open final.
When Alcaraz steps onto the Inalpi Arena Centre Court on Sunday, he will be the first Spaniard in 13 years to appear in the final of the ATP Finals.
Rafael Nadal is the last Spanish man to reach the final of the ATP Finals
In 2013, Rafael Nadal made his last appearance in the final of the ATP Finals.
The Spaniard, who never won the tournament, defeated David Ferrer, Tomas Berdych and Stan Wawrinka to qualify for the semi-finals in London.
In the semi-finals, Nadal defeated Roger Federer 7-5, 6-3.
Nadal’s run was halted in the final by Novak Djokovic, who defeated the Spaniard 6-3, 6-4.
By defeating Nadal in London, Djokovic had well and truly avenged his US Open final loss to the Spaniard earlier that year.
Following his US Open loss in September 2013, Djokovic defeated Nadal in the final of two events – the China Open and ATP Finals.
As for Carlos Alcaraz, he could end a 27-year Spanish drought at the Finals – Alex Corretja remains the last Spanish man to win the title, having done so in 1998.
Rafael Nadal’s poor record at the ATP Finals
It is no secret that Rafael Nadal’s least favourite surface was indoor hard courts – the Spaniard’s topspin-heavy game simply did not suit the fast conditions.
Before reaching the 2013 final, Nadal contested the 2010 ATP Finals final against Roger Federer.
Nadal, who recently named his favourite tournament aside from the French Open, fought hard against his great rival, but ultimately fell to a 3-6, 6-3, 1-6 defeat against the Swiss maestro.
As noted previously, Nadal never reached the ATP Finals final after 2013. His best results in the following years came in 2015 and 2020 – he made the semi-final stage in both editions of the event.
