The match scheduled in the evening session of the London Champions Tournament will take place between the Iberian Rafael Nadal, returned after a slight abdomen injury in the Paris tournament and the German Alexander Zverev, last year’s title champion.

Rafael Nadal

◾️The Iberian player has again had an excellent season so far, obtaining the position of world leader after the Paris-Bercy tournament, where he was forced to retire.
◾️He won two Grand Slam tournaments this year, the one at Roland Garros and then at the US Open, where he defeated Daniil Medvedev.
◾️After the victory at the US Open, he only participated in the tournament in Paris-Bercy, where his performance was excellent until the moment of the semifinal, when he had to withdraw following a stretch in the abdominal muscles.

Alexander Zverev

◾️The player from Germany, at 22, is currently ranked 7th ATP, occupying in April this year even the third place.
◾️Surprisingly, in 2019 he managed to win only the 250-point tournament in Geneva, but his tennis is again on an uphill slope.
◾️But he was very consistent at the end of the year, reaching the semifinals in Beijing, respectively in the last act in Shanghai, where he was defeated by the Russian Daniil Medvedev.

🎾Direct meetings

▫️The two players have met 5 times so far, the score being 5-0 in favor of Rafael Nadal, but the last match took place in 2018, on the slum in Rome, where Nadal was 2-1 in the sets.

🎾What is the shape of the players in the last 5 matches?

• Rafael Nadal
• Last result: 0-1 vs Shapovalov (Nadal retired)
• Shape: L W W W W

◽️Rafael Nadal (# 1 ATP, 33 years old) is one of the most powerful players in tennis history, but even so he never managed to win the Champions Tournament.
◽️With a total of three entries in the Masters Cup, Rafa Nadal achieved his best performance at this competition in 2013, when he reached the final, but gave way to Djokovic.
◽️At the 2015 edition he gave up in the semifinals, while in 2017 he was eliminated from the group.
◽️However, he seems to be quite mounted in London, given that he comes after a participation in Paris, where he looked very good, but which culminated in an abandonment.
◽️Injured to a training session, Rafa Nadal preferred not to force and chose not to play the match with Shapovalov in the semifinals, a sign that he wants to be very ready for the 2019 Masters Cup.

• Alexander Zverev
• Last result: 1-2 against Shapovalov
• Shape: L W L L W

◽️Alexander Zverev (# 7 ATP, 22 years old) comes to the Champions Tournament from the winner position of the previous edition.
◽️In 2018, he became the “champion of champions”, at the end of a final with Djokovic. In fact, he came to the Masters Cup in 2017, when he was, however, eliminated from the group stage.
◽️Sasha also comes after attending ATP Paris, where he did not look incredible, being eliminated from the eighths by Shapovalov, the man who had to face Nadal before the Spaniard retired.
◽️During the match, which the Canadian won in three sets, the German managed five aces, recording five double errors, and played with the first service in 63% of cases. At the same time, he converted two of the 13 break chances he had.

🎾News, analysis, statistics and progress about the 2 players.

◾️He has 51 wins and 6 defeats in 2019, of which 25 with 2 on the hard.
◾️He came after 16 consecutive victories before retiring from Paris.
◾️He won the US Open, the most important hard tennis tournament in 2019, the year in which he ticked off: Montreal (hard), Roland Garros and Rome (both slag).
◾️Only 22 of the 84 trophies in his career came on the hard, his favorite surface being obviously clay.
◾️He is 185 cm / 85 kg and strikes with his left hand.
◾️He has 45 wins and 24 defeats in 2019, of which 27 with 13 on the hard.
◾️He has 3 defeats in the last 4 matches.
◾️He won a single tournament in 2019, on the slab in Geneva.
◾️6 out of 13 tournaments in his career came on the hard.
◾️He weighs 198 cm / 90 kg and strikes with his right hand.

Rafael Nadal: Player form, news and statistics
V V V V Î

◽️Rafa Nadal wants to finish the 5th season in the 1st place in the world rankings.
◽️But the Spaniard approaches the last major tournament of the year without being 100% physically.
◽️The Spaniard withdrew from Paris a week ago after not appearing in the semi-final with Shapovalov, but he hopes that in London he will be as close to his full capacity as possible!
◽️In an interview with a publication, the coach of the Iberian, Carlos Moya stated that Rafa is 80% physically, but hopes that Nadal will be 100% at the time of the match with Zverev.
◽️And not only in the match against the German, but for the entire duration of the tournament, if Rafael wants to finish the year in the first position in the ATP hierarchy.
◽️It will not be easy at all, but if things go well for Nadal, then the Iberian has a good chance of winning the Champions Tournament for the first time.
◽️As it was physically ok, Nadal moved very well to Paris and did not give up set in the 3 games played in the capital of France.
◽️The Spaniard was assigned to Andre Agassi, along with 3 of the representatives of the new generation, Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Daniil Medvedev.
◽️The race begins against the German, whom he has defeated on each occasion, both on the hard and the slag. It will not be an easy match, but if Nadal does not feel pain in the abdominal area, then I am confident that Rafa will start with the right to this year’s London edition.

Alexander Zverev: Player form, news and statistics
V I I V I

◽️Alexander Zverev has not been moving very well lately.
◽️Especially since in the race are the three tennis titans, but also the other players of his generation who are also in great shape.
◽️Sascha recently had a final and a semi-final, in two major tournaments, Shanghai and Beijing, in the Asian season, but upon his return to Europe, the Germans disappointed, with modest developments in Basel and Paris.
◽️As I said, the German has not been constant throughout this season, and that has cost him many times.
◽️We remember the modest developments at the US Open, where he was eliminated after a pitiful match against Schwartzman or at Wimbledon, when he bowed from the first lap in front of the much weaker Jiri Vesely. ◽️The quality is unquestionable in the German game, but when it comes to a poor day, Sascha is unrecognizable.
◽️The group that he himself extracted is not easy at all, given that Rafa comes with great ambitions in London, and the other players are also motivated, being at the first appearance at the Champions Tournament.
◽️If he can manage to serve his ordinary ability and will not make his unforced errors, then Alexander has a good chance in front of Rafa, especially if it will not be in maximum physical shape!

🎾Direct match statistics Rafael Nadal vs Alexander Zverev

◾️The two players have met 5 times so far, and Nadal has always prevailed in front of the German! The last direct confrontation took place last year, on the slab in Rome, when Rafa won 2-1.

Tennis Prediction of the Day Rafael Nadal vs Alexander Zverev

The match between the two is announced very spectacular, but the physical form of the Spanish player is not known. Alexander Zverev showed last year in this tournament that he can beat any player in the circuit, and if Nadal is not at full capacity, he will have a difficult mission against the German, despite leading him 5-0 in the clashes direct. So I expect a solid match made by Alexander Zverev, managing to keep close to the Iberian player throughout the meeting.

Prediction Today: A. Zverev +3.5 games

Odds: 1.75

A disputed match is announced. Especially if the two players will be in a good mood. In Rafa, the problem of physical condition is raised, but according to the latest news, the Iberian seems to be ok from this point of view. The ambition is high, especially since Rafa has never won the Champions Tournament, and the stakes of finishing the year in the first place are huge. Sascha needs to evolve to a very high level to have real chances, and the service needs to help him. Even in these conditions, I still think that Rafa can start with the right and for this reason go on the victory at the H of 2.5 gamers of the Iberian. The odds are good!

Bet Tips: Victory Nadal at H of 2.5 games

Odds: 1.73