Turin, Nov 16: Rafael Nadal’s error-strewn performance saw him eliminated from the ATP Finals, missing out once again on adding one of the few major trophies still missing from his glittering list of titles.
The top-seeded Nadal lost 6-3 6-4 to tournament debutant Felix Auger-Aliassime to leave him with two straight group-stage defeats in Turin on Tuesday. That result coupled with a victory for third-seeded Casper Ruud over Taylor Fritz in the later match meant a swift exit for Nadal.
It also meant that Carlos Alcaraz is guaranteed to end the year ranked No. 1 and the Spanish player will travel to Turin to attend a special ceremony on Wednesday.
The 36-year-old Nadal has now lost four straight matches for only the second time in his career, following defeats at the US Open and Paris. After starting the season by winning the Australian Open and French Open to take his tally of Grand Slam titles to a record 22, Nadal has played just eight singles matches since having to withdraw from the Wimbledon semifinals with an injury.
Nadal was beaten by eighth-seeded Fritz of the United States in their opening match on Sunday.
The fifth-seeded Auger-Aliassime also lost his opener, to Ruud, and so Tuesday’s match was crucial to both players’ hopes of staying in the tournament.
Nadal has never won the ATP Finals title in 10 attempts. He finished runner-up in 2010 and 2013.
Nadal needed Fritz to beat Ruud in two sets to have any chance of reaching the semifinals and that hope was dashed when the Norwegian won 6-3 4-6 7-6 (6).
Meanwhile, five-time champion Novak Djokovic eased into the final four with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Andrey Rublev on Wednesday.
It took the seventh-seeded Djokovic just 68 minutes to see off Rublev and make it two wins out of two in Turin to qualify for his 11th semifinal in 15 appearances.
Djokovic is aiming to equal Roger Federer’s record six titles at the event. His last victory came in 2015. (AP)
