Final Preview: Alcaraz, Sinner ready for last dance of 2025 at Nitto ATP Finals

We’ve been building towards this moment for some time.

From their respective titles as emerging talents at the Next Gen ATP Finals to their Grand Slam sweep during the past two seasons, it all adds up to this moment Sunday when World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and No. 2 Jannik Sinner face off in the Nitto ATP Finals title match (6 p.m. CET/noon ET) for the first time inside Turin's Inalpi Arena.

As if to emphasise their dominance, Alcaraz and Sinner droppd a combined 13 games in their respective resounding semi-final wins Saturday over Felix Auger-Aliassime and Alex de Minaur.

Alcaraz will be looking to crown his season by adding a personal-best ninth title – and first at the season finale – just three days after claiming ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by PIF honours for the second time. But he know nothing will be handed to him Sunday.
"It is great facing Jannik," Alcaraz said, looking ahead to the final. "If it was someone else I wouldn't mind to be honest, but it is great…I have to play my plan A if I want to beat him, if I want to win the tournament. We will both raise our levels to the top, which is great for the fans and the crowd."

Sinner, who most recently was No. 1 for a week after winning the Rolex Paris Masters, looks to become an undefeated champion for the second straight year by winning his 10^th consecutive match in Turin and extending his indoor winning steak to 31 matches.

And this is all set against the backdrop of the game’s most captivating Lexus ATP Head2Head series, one that already is showing potential to evolve into one comparable to all-time great rivalries like Borg-McEnroe, Sampras-Agassi, Federer-Nadal and Djokovic-Nadal.

After Alcaraz claimed four of the previous five meetings this year, Sinner will enjoy the off-season a whole lot more if he ends 2025 with a meaningful slice of revenge in front of passionate home fans. 

But don't count on Alcaraz to give the home favourite an inch in what promises to be an epic showdown expected to add an exclamation point to a memorable 2025 ATP Tour season. 

Most meetings between current or former No. 1s in a season...

At 24, Sinner is the youngest player to reach three consecutive Nitto ATP Finals title matches since Lleyton Hewitt (23) in 2004. Having held all 40 services games this week, Sinner joins Novak Djokovic (2018) as the only player to reach the final without being broken (since records were kept in 1991). The Italian last surrendered his serve (just once) to Ben Shelton in the Paris quarter-finals.

Sinner is also looking to narrow the significant 5-10 deficit in career meetings with the Murcia native. Here is a look at their five meetings in 2025...

Asked in press after his 7-5, 6-2 semi-final win over De Minaur about the prospect of playing Alcaraz in the final, Sinner showed respect for Auger-Aliassime by offering measured comments about the possible dream final against the Spaniard.

“I'm of course happy first of all to finish my season here, another final. It has been an amazing year for me. I'm looking forward for tomorrow,” he said.

“These are matches I look forward to. Also to see for me where my level really is but in the same time it's great before the off-season to have this matchup."

Longest indoor hard-court winning streaks

You have to go back to their first meeting at the Rolex Paris Masters in 2021 to find the only time Alcaraz and Sinner have played on indoor hard. The Spaniard won that match 7-6(1), 7-5. He also has won seven of their nine meetings on hard court, including most recently in a four-set US Open final.

How Alcaraz handles Sinner's first serve - and how aggressive he is on second serves - could prove critical in Sunday's meeting.

If Sinner plays to his strengths, he will lean into first-strike tennis against his great rival. According to TDI Insights data, this season against all opponents Sinner has won 57 per cent of rallies between 0-4 shots, significantly better than Alcaraz's 53 per cent clip. Sinner enjoys a similar edge in extended rallies of nine or more strokes.

Alcaraz's sweet spot comes in the 5-8 shot range, where he has won 57 per cent of points against all opponents this year, with Sinner winning 54 per cent of those rallies.

Topping his previous-best 65 wins and six titles in 2023, Alcaraz's 71 wins sets him well clear of Sinner (57), De Minaur (56) and Zverev (55).

Most tour-level wins in 2025...

Alcaraz is bidding to be the first player since Andy Murray in 2016 to win nine titles in a season. Back then, the Briton defeated Novak Djokovic in the Nitto ATP Finals title match when year-end No. 1 was a winner-takes-all final showdown.

After defeating Auger-Aliassime 6-2, 6-4 in the semi-finals, Alcaraz is now looking to become the first Spanish winner since Alex Corretja enjoyed a surprise victory in 1998 and third Spaniard overall (also Manuel Orantes in 1976).

Salisbury Chases Third Nitto ATP Finals Doubles Crown
In the doubles final (3 p.m. CET/9 a.m. ET), Joe Salisbury takes a personal 14-match winning streak at the tournament into battle with partner Neal Skupski against Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten.

Salisbury triumphed in Turin in 2022 and 2023 with Rajeev Ram. But did not qualify for the tournament last year. Fellow Brit Skupski is into the final at the season-end event for the first time.

Salisbury and Skupski hold a 46-21 record on the season and seek their first title of 2025 together this week. The Brits reached finals at Roland Garros and the US Open. In Saturday's semi-finals, Salisbury and Skupski enjoyed a 6-7(3), 6-3, 10-8 win over Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool, who this week clinched Year-End ATP Doubles No. 1 presented by PIF honours.

One year on from suffering a semi-final exit on debut at the prestigious season finale, Heliovaara and Patten marched into the final following a 6-4, 6-3 last-four victory against Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori.

The 36-year-old Heliovaara, of Finland, and 29-year-old Patten, of Great Britain, will on Sunday play for their eighth tour-level title as a team, and their second indoor title of the year after they lifted the Rolex Paris Masters title earlier this month.

- Jon Jeraj provided research for this article.