Turin’s ATP Finals: Cobolli, Fils, Tiafoe and Jodar Make Debuts With Title Hopes

Cobolli Faces Fitness Questions

Fifth seed Flavio Cobolli will make his debut in front of home fans as the only Italian in the field. He won the Acapulco title and reached the Roland Garros final, where Alexander Zverev beat him in five sets.

Cobolli reached the top 10 for the first time this year and climbed to a career-high No. 6 in August. His season record is 36-24, but a muscle strain led him to retire in Vienna and withdraw from the Paris Masters; he has not played since. He opens Monday night against Daniil Medvedev, who leads their series 2-1, although Cobolli won their latest meeting in Madrid.

Fils Draws A Tough Group

Arthur Fils is the first French player to qualify since Gaël Monfils in 2016. The sixth seed, who described qualification as a childhood dream, won titles in Barcelona and Cincinnati and holds a 39-16 record this season.

Tiafoe Seeks Better Form

At 28, Frances Tiafoe is the oldest debutant. He won the Halle title, reached the Cincinnati final and US Open semifinals, and posted a 44-21 record while rising to a career-high No. 8 in the ATP rankings.

No injury problems have been reported, but Tiafoe has lost four matches since the US Open semifinals, including to Fils in Tokyo and Quentin Halys in Paris. He leads Cobolli 4-1 and has a 5-5 record against top-10 opponents. Tiafoe opens Monday afternoon against Carlos Alcaraz, who leads their series 2-1; they have not played since 2024.

Jodar Arrives As Youngest

Jodar starts Sunday afternoon against No. 1 Zverev, who beat him in straight sets at Roland Garros in their only meeting. Jodar’s route toward the semifinals could involve beating Fils, whom he has defeated twice this year, and upsetting Zverev or Shelton. Seven players have won the Finals on debut, most recently Stefanos Tsitsipas in 2019, but this year’s newcomers are seeds five through eight.