Djokovic, Alcaraz, Swiatek… the challenges of the end of the 2024 season

Will Novak Djokovic go to the Masters?

Registered for the Shanghai Masters 1000 which starts in a week, Novak Djokovic seems to be looking for several goals at the end of the season. After having confided a few days ago during the Davis Cup weekend that his priorities were now the Grand Slams and the Davis Cup, the Serb will still play the Shanghai Masters 1000 which starts in a week. Winner of the tournament 4 times, which is a record, Djokovic will be seeded number 4. After the tournament, he will go play the exhibition Six Kings Slam in Saudi Arabia before perhaps playing the Masters 1000 in Paris-Bercy. Currently 9th in the Race, the Serb will have to work twice as hard if he wants to participate in the end-of-year Masters event.

Will Carlos Alcaraz finally have a successful end to the season?

This is clearly not his favorite period. While Carlos Alcaraz is very comfortable in the middle of the season, on clay, grass or outdoor hard courts, the young Spanish prodigy paradoxically finds himself in more difficulty when the end of the season, which for most tournaments coincides with the arrival of indoors, arrives. As proof, he has never done better than an eighth-final in Shanghai, a quarter-final in Bercy and a semi-final at the Masters. During this period, he has only managed to beat 2 top 10s, Berrettini in Vienna in 2021 and Sinner in Bercy the same year. Of the 15 titles he has won, the Spanish player has not won any indoors, if we put aside the 2021 Next Gen Masters in Milan because it was played with sets in 4 games. The main explanation for his difficulties seems to be significant fatigue after a long season. But the Spanish player can also wonder about his schedule which clearly seems too busy. His recent participation in the Laver Cup, even crowned with success, then his upcoming participation in the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Saudi Arabia which will take place from October 16 to 19 inevitably raise questions about the recovery moments that the Spanish player must reserve for himself. It remains to be seen whether this end of the season will finally smile on the Spaniard.

Will a Frenchman finish the year in the top 20?

After an average year, with six Grand Slam round of 16 appearances but only 4 titles won, the French will undoubtedly be keen to finish the 2024 season well. With two Masters 1000 and 4 ATP 500 events still to be played, two French players seem to have the weapons to finish the year among the top 20 players in the world. 22nd in the Race, Ugo Humbert has a chance of achieving this goal. Despite the title he has to defend in Metz, he is coming to a period of the year that suits his game well. He could even start scoring points this week in Tokyo where he can benefit from an open draw. Arthur Fils, for his part, will mainly have the points from his final in Antwerp to defend. Qualified for the round of 16 of the ATP 500 in Tokyo after beating Taylor Fritz, the Parisian is preparing to play Matteo Berrettini in the round of 16. Fils has nothing to lose in this tournament as in most of the tournaments that will follow, notably in the Masters 1000 of Paris-Bercy where he had lost in the first round last year. The two men will therefore try to conclude in the best possible way a year that will ultimately be quite close to last year in terms of ranking: Ugo Humbert had indeed finished the year in 20th place in the world ahead of Adrian Mannarino who had finished 22nd.

Will Swiatek remain world number 1?

At first glance, she is not in any danger. World number 1 Iga Swiatek has a 2169-point lead over her Belarusian competitor Aryna Sabalenka, which seems to be a very comfortable cushion and enough to end the year serenely. But the Polish player has points to defend at the end of the year, unlike her rival who was already briefly world number 1 last year and who dreams of becoming so again. The proof is that she has 8285 points in the Race while Sabalenka has 7876, which is therefore a very small lead. In addition, she has just withdrawn from the Masters 1000 in Beijing while Sabalenka will be seeded number 1 in the tournament. The winner of the US Open will have to qualify for the final if she wants to hope to overtake the winner of Roland Garros in the Race. This promises an interesting fight for the coming weeks.

Who will go to the Masters?

While two players, namely Sinner and Zverev, have already validated their place for the big Turin event at the end of the season, six places are still available. While Medvedev, Fritz and Ruud seem very well placed to qualify, the last two places seem accessible to many players. While they are currently held by Rublev and De Minaur, they are under threat from Djokovic (the defending champion), Dimitrov, Paul and even Tsitsipas, who like Alcaraz found his form again during the Laver Cup. A fight that will begin this Wednesday with the ATP 500 in Beijing and Tokyo.

As with the men, two players have already had their places validated for the big event in November, which will take place this year for the first time in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. These two players are Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka. Behind Rybakina, if she is fit to play, Paolini and Pegula should also be present in Saudi Arabia. After them, there are 3 places left, currently occupied by 3 Americans: Gauff, Navarro and Collins, who has just withdrawn from the Masters 1000 in Beijing and is currently playing her last season. But the 3 Americans should be wary because Zheng, Kasatkina and Krejcikova are lying in wait. For this, the players still have two Masters 100, 3 WTA 500 and possibly 5 WTA 250 to go and get the last 6 tickets to Riyadh.

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