Just as World No. 1 Jannik Sinner will look to cap his banner year with the Nitto ATP Finals title Sunday, so too will year-end doubles No. 1 team Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic, who meet Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz for the seventh time this season.
Salvadoran Arevalo and Croatian Pavic fell in straight sets when the teams met in group play this week, and trail the Germans 2-4 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.
Arevalo and Pavic had won just three matches against all opposition since falling to the Germans in the US Open semi-finals, but are now in position to punctuate their year with a fifth title of the season and first since Cincinnati in August.
“It means a lot. I think this was the goal at the beginning of the tournament and also ending the season in the best way possible,” Arevalo said of the title quest.
[ATP AWARDS]
Having saved a match point in Saturday's semi-final against Aussie duo Jordan Thompson and Max Purcell, Krawietz and Puetz have the chance to become the first all-German duo to win the Nitto ATP Finals doubles crown.
"We knew when we came here we could beat everyone," Krawietz said. "Being No. 8, we were happy to qualify here and then just tried to see what we could do and it has worked out very well."
The doubles final begins at 3 p.m. CET/9 a.m. ET.
[NEWSLETTER FORM]