Ricky’s pick for the Nitto ATP Finals round robin: Sinner vs. Rune

Jannik Sinner has treated the home crowd at the Nitto ATP Finals to an absolutely ideal start. The world No. 4 is 2-0 through two matches in Turin, Italy–highlighted by an epic 7-5, 6-7(5), 7-6(2) victory over Novak Djokovic on Tuesday night.

What will Sinner do for an encore?

Next up for the Italian is a final round-robin match against Holger Rune on Thursday night. It remains to be seen what will be at stake for Sinner, as the Djokovic vs. Hubert Hurkacz match during the afternoon session could have an impact. Sinner could clinch a semifinal spot depending on the Djokovic-Hurkacz result.

Either way, the 22-year-old is likely in for a tough match against Rune. The Dane is 2-0 lifetime in the matchup, as he prevailed via retirement while leading 5-7, 6-4, 5-2 at the 2022 Sofia event and 1-6, 7-5, 7-5 at this year’s Monte-Carlo Masters. Rune struggled after Wimbledon, but he is back in business coming off semifinal performances in Basel and Paris. The eighth-ranked Dane opened in Turin with a three-set loss to Djokovic before getting a retirement from Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Jannik Sinner will be looking to build on one of the biggest wins of his career when he faces Holger Rune in the last Green Group round-robin match at the Nitto ATP Finals on Thursday night.

Still, it’s hard to bet against Sinner. He is playing at home and he is in awesome form. The fourth seed is 60-14 this season with four titles (incluing his first Masters 1000 triumph in Toronto) and two runner-up showings–including in Miami.

Look for an inspired Sinner to send his fans home happy yet again.

Pick: Sinner in 3

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.