World no 2 Carlos Alcaraz is ready to make his ATP Finals debut ad the 20-year-old star arrived here at the Pala Alpitour, where he received a tour of the season finale’s home and enjoyed his first practice session on centre court with junior World No. 1 Joao Fonseca.
The Spaniard practises at Pala Alpitour for the first time Wednesday.
Last year, Alcaraz made a brief visit to the arena to receive his ATP Year-End No. 1 honour. He had qualified for the year-end championships, but did not compete due to injury.
Now Alcaraz is ready to play in the prestigious eight-man event for the first time. Tied for the ATP Tour lead with six titles this year according to ATP Stats, the Spaniard will try to add a seventh to his 2023 collection between November 12 and 19.
The other seven competitors in the singles field are Novak Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev, Jannik Sinner, Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev and Holger Rune.
Alcaraz and Rune are the first 20-and-under pair to compete in the same ATP Finals since 2000, when 19-year-old Lleyton Hewitt and 20-year-old Marat Safin made their debuts, ATP Tour reports.
The draw will take place on Thursday. Alcaraz and top-seeded Djokovic are guaranteed to be in separate groups.
–IANS
bc/
