Rafael Nadal and Felix Auger-Aliassime both lost in straight sets on Sunday, meaning either could be eliminated from semifinal contention depending on Tuesday’s results. In their third meeting, Felix will attempt to procure his first victory over Rafa. Tuesday also sees Sunday’s singles winners, Casper Ruud and Taylor Fritz, face off to take the lead in the Green Group.
Each day, this preview will analyze the most intriguing matchup, while highlighting the other matches on the schedule. Tuesday’s play begins at 11:30am local time.
Rafael Nadal (1) vs. Felix Auger-Aliassime (5) – Not Before 2:00pm
This is a rematch from a tight affair at this year’s French Open. In the fourth round, Auger-Aliassime pushed Nadal to five sets before succumbing to the King of Clay. In doing so, Felix became only the third man to reach a fifth set against Rafa at Roland Garros (Djokovic, Isner).
Of course Nadal would go on to win his 14th French Open title, but he has not won a title since. In fact, he’s only gone 8-4 since that event. Meanwhile, FAA has had an excellent end to the season, at one point winning 16 straight indoor hard court matches, and three titles in as many weeks. However, he’s now on a two-match losing streak.
Rafa also claimed their only other prior matchup, three years ago in Madrid. This will be their first time playing on a hard court, as well as indoors. Those conditions should certainly favor Felix, as does Nadal’s recent lack of play. I like Auger-Aliassime’s chances to earn his first win over the 22-time Major champion on Tuesday.
Other Notable Matches on Tuesday:
Casper Ruud (3) vs. Taylor Fritz (8) – This is a rare first career meeting at the ATP Finals. Ruud is now 49-20 on the year, and 23-11 on hard courts. Fritz is 44-19 overall, and 31-13 on hard courts. Casper was a semifinalist here a year ago, while this is Taylor’s ATP Finals debut.
Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer (3) vs. Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos (7) – Both teams lost their opening matches on Sunday. This is these team’s first meeting of 2022.
Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury (2) vs. Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara (6) – The winner will become the only undefeated team in their group. Glasspool and Heliovaara won both their matches against Ram and Salisbury this season, one on clay and one on grass.
Tuesday’s full Order of Play is here.
