Top seeds Arevalo/Pavic set rematch for Nitto ATP Finals title

Top seeds Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic have engineered a remarkable turnaround to reach the championship match of the Nitto ATP Finals.

Despite arriving in Turin having lost their three matches since reaching the US Open semi-finals, Arevalo and Pavic have moved to within one victory of the season finale trophy. They defeated seventh seeds Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten 7-6(1), 7-6(4) in the semi-finals.

“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. “We cannot ask for a better position at the moment. We’re playing the final tomorrow. One last match, you cannot play another match in the season. So we’re trying to compete hard and enjoy at the same time. Tomorrow we go back [to] business and we’re going to do what we do the best, which is competing, have a great energy tomorrow and hopefully we can lift the trophy tomorrow.”

Arevalo and Pavic lost their first match in the Bob Bryan Group to the team they will play on Sunday for the crown: Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz. The Salvadoran-Croatian team already clinched Year-End ATP Doubles No. 1 presented by PIF honours earlier in the week.

“We started getting wins again. We had a great season and after the US Open we had a big break until Shanghai and after we got back we lost the first few rounds,” Pavic said. “Obviously you don’t feel great on the court… we found a way. As soon as we got the first win in the group, I believe we started playing much better and I guess that’s what we needed.”

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The victors made the perfect start, breaking their opponents’ serve in the first game of the match. They also broke immediately in the second set, but on both occasions Arevalo and Pavic needed to hold their nerve in a tie-break to move through.

Arevalo and Pavic earned a match point at 5-4 in the second set, but an Arevalo lob was not good enough to clear Heliovaara’s head. The seventh seeds were unable to carry the momentum into the tie-break, though.

The top seeds’ next opponents, Krawietz and Puetz, saved a match point to defeat Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson earlier in the day. Krawietz and Puetz upset Arevalo and Pavic 6-3, 6-4 in round-robin action. 

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