From near-historic feats to remarkable demonstrations of resilience, the teams that qualified for the ATP Finals in Turin, Italy, impressed throughout the year. With the tournament under way, here’s a look at the eight duos that got there. (Seeds in parentheses)
Nikola Mektic-Mate Pavic (1)
In their first year playing together, the Croatians experienced one of the best eight-month stretches to start a season in the Open Era. Among their nine titles heading into the ATP Finals, Mektic and Pavic won three Masters events, Wimbledon and the Gold Medal at the Olympics. However, they hit a rough patch during the late summer that stretched into the fall. Mektic and Pavic won their first match in Turin, which could be an early indication of a turnaround.
Rajeev Ram-Joe Salisbury (2)
While Mektic and Pavic were the story for most of the year, Ram and Salisbury caught fire during the summer hard-court stretch, beating that duo in the Canada final and going on to win the US Open, their second major in two years. Those were the only two titles for the American-English duo in 2021, but they did reach four other finals, among them the Australian Open and most recently in Vienna.
Pierre-Hugues Herbert-Nicolas Mahut (3)
In 2019, the French duo closed out the regular season with the Masters title in Paris, with that momentum carrying over to the ATP Finals, where they won the tournament for the first time. This year, they fell short at the Paris Masters final, ending their bid to for a perfect run in the French capital after a second Roland Garros win. They haven’t played together as much as Herbert makes a singles push, but have routinely proven that they can rise to the occasion on the biggest stages, even after time apart.
Marcel Granollers-Horacio Zeballos (4)
With only two years together as a team, the Spanish-Argentinean duo has shown they’re a threat on every surface. Their Wimbledon final this summer was their second appearance in a major championship match after their US Open run in 2019. They won two Masters titles this season, in Madrid and Cincinnati, but recently dropped their opener in Indian Wells. Their spirit is high, though, as they fought off four match points to kick off their Turin run.