An exciting doubles season draws towards its climax next week at the O2 arena, when the eight best doubles teams battle it out for supremacy. Here is a preview of what to expect next week in London:
Group Woodbridge/Woodforde
This group is the tougher of the Round Robin groups as it involves a plethora of doubles experience and major titles. All four teams look very strong and there will be no weak link as these teams do battle in a hotly contested line-up.
Łukasz Kubot/Marcelo Melo
The team to beat this season has been Łukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo and can secure the year end world number one as a team with two round robin victories. They have won six titles in 2017, which includes their Wimbledon victory in July, when they beat Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic. They are definitely the team to beat and will fancy their chances on what has been historically a fast indoor hard court surface.
Titles: 6
Head to Head Against the Group in 2017: 5-3
Prediction: Winners
Jamie Murray/Bruno Soares
The British-Brazilian combination have had a disappointing season after winning the Australian Open and the US Open in 2016. Their lack of consistency in grand slams means they haven’t been able to reach the heights of 2016 and have fallen behind other teams. Despite this, they should not be overlooked as they were the best team of 2016 and can push the very best teams to their limits.
Titles: 3
Head to head against the group in 2017: 1-3
Prediction: Round Robin
Bob Bryan/Mike Bryan
The historic Bryan brothers will head into the World Tour Finals as the underdogs as they have produced poor results and have become too predictable in their style of play. However their consistency for reaching the Quarter-Finals of events and weaker doubles teams, means they have once again reached the season ending finale in London. It will be tough to get through the group and will have to be at their peak performance if they want to win the event.
Titles: 2
Head to head against the group in 2017: 1-1
Prediction: Round Robin
Ivan Dodig/Marcel Granollers
The seventh seeds are one of the dark horses at London as they have improved their level of play in the last few weeks. After winning Basel and losing in the Paris final, they look a real threat and both players like the indoor hard courts. If they continue to play at their recent level, then they should join Kubot and Melo into the Semi-Finals.
Titles: 2
Head to head against the group in 2017: 1-3
Prediction: Semi-Finals
Group Eltingh/Haarhuis
The Eltingh/Haarhuis Group should be less competitive than the other group, considering the form book of two of the four teams competing in this group. Three of this season’s grand slam champions feature in this group and also sees two former champions of the ATP World Tour Finals.
Henri Kontinen/John Peers
The top seeds have had a rather topsy-turvy 2017 despite winning the Australian Open in January. They didn’t win a title until August and have not been as successful as many have predicted. However the defending champions will like their chances in London and could push Kubot and Melo for the year end world number one ranking.
Titles: 4
Head to head against the group in 2017: 3-4
Prediction: Semi-Finals
Jean-Julien Rojer/Horia Tecau
The 2015 Champions have had an odd season as they went under the radar in the first half of the season as they struggled to find their form. However like all good Doubles teams they bounced back to claim the US Open title beating two of the teams that appear in London next week. They will like the conditions in London and fully expect them to reach the Semi-Finals.
Titles: 4
Head to head against the group in 2017: 2-1
Prediction: Final
Pierre-Hughes Herbert/Nicolas Mahut
The two time grand slam champions to maintain the high level of play they showed in the previous two years. The French duo will have to thank their pre US Open form for their participation in next week’s doubles showdown. They haven’t traditionally performed well at the O2 arena and not many people will expect them to do so again.
Titles: 3
Head to head against the group in 2017: 1-0
Prediction: Round Robin
Ryan Harrison/Michael Venus
This team have been the surprise package of the 2017 season. The eight seeds became grand slam champions on their first attempt as a team and have proven that you can break the norm to become a successful doubles team. In the last few months they haven’t been able to produce good results and may struggle in London.
Titles: 2
Head to head against the group: 1-2
Prediction: Round Robin
