Photo: Andrey Udartsev

DANIIL GETS IT DONE

After an 882-day wait, Daniil Medvedev is a champion once again on the ATP Tour.

The former No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings snapped his title drought, which dated back to Rome in May 2023, with a pulsating final triumph Sunday against Corentin Moutet at the Almaty Open. With victory at the Kazakhstani indoor ATP 250, Medvedev captured his 21st tour-level crown, all of which have come at different events.

"To win feels amazing," said Medvedev after defeating Moutet 7-5, 4-6, 6-3. “In the most important points I played good… I am happy to win the title. It continues my funny story of 21 titles in 21 different cities."

Medvedev improved his Nitto ATP Finals qualification hopes by winning in Almaty, where he was cheered on by his wife and both young daughters together for the first time at a tournament. He is up three spots to 12th in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin after his title run, and he now trails eighth-placed Lorenzo Musetti by just 875 points.

Medvedev was not the only member of the Live Race’s chasing pack to taste ATP 250 success on Sunday. Casper Ruud took the title at the BNP Paribas Nordic Open to bolster his standing in 11th, while ninth-placed Felix Auger-Aliassime is now 330 points behind Musetti after lifting the BNP Paribas Fortis European Open crown in Brussels.

All three of last week's ATP 250 champions will look to further boost their respective Turin bids at ATP 500 level this week. Medvedev competes at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna, where Jannik Sinner is the top seed, while Auger-Aliassime and Ruud are in the field at the Swiss Indoors Basel.

THIS WEEK

Photo: Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour

The final ATP 500 action of the 2025 season takes place across Basel and Vienna. Both indoor hard-court tournaments run from 20-26 October.

CHAMPIONS

Photo: Peter Hansson

[2] D. Medvedev d [8] C. Moutet (FRA) 75 46 63

Daniil Medvedev withstood the lefty wizardry of Frenchman Corentin Moutet to clinch his first ATP Tour title since 2023 at the Almaty Open. The former World No. 1 had lost his previous six finals but outlasted Moutet to win his 19th hard-court trophy. Medvedev is now 12-3 since starting work with coaches Thomas Johansson and Rohan Goetzke.

[2] F. Auger-Aliassime (CAN) d [3] J. Lehecka (CZE) 76(2) 67(6) 62

Felix Auger-Aliassime let slip two championship points in the second-set tie-break of the BNP Paribas Fortis European Open final, but he did not let that derail his title bid. The second-seeded Canadian promptly brushed aside Jiri Lehecka in the deciding set to earn his third ATP Tour crown of the season.

[2] C. Ruud (NOR) d [4] U. Humbert (FRA) 62 63

Casper Ruud produced a stunning final display to race to the trophy at the BNP Paribas Nordic Open. The Norwegian downed Ugo Humbert in 68 minutes to win his 14th tour-level title and his second of 2025. Ruud is the first Norwegian champion in the history of the Stockholm ATP 250, and he has now won a Tour-leading 11 matches indoors in 2025.

POP QUIZ

Felix Auger-Aliassime will this week aim to tie former No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings Stefan Edberg as a three-time champion at the Swiss Indoors Basel.

Only one player is ahead of Edberg on the list of most titles won in Basel — another former World No. 1 who triumphed 10 times at the indoor hard-court ATP 500. Can you name him?

Felix On The Turin Trail: Felix Auger-Aliassime jumped one spot to ninth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin following his BNP Paribas Fortis European Open triumph. The 25-year-old Canadian has now won 15 matches across his past four events to give himself a shot at returning to the Nitto ATP Finals for the second time after his 2022 debut. Auger-Aliassime now heads to the Swiss Indoors Basel, where he is a two-time champion.

EDITOR'S PICKS

SPOTLIGHT

Photo: Getty Images/ATP Tour

SPOT SEALED!

Novak Djokovic has tied the record for most Nitto ATP Finals qualifications, joining Roger Federer with 18.

Djokovic was guaranteed his place at the 2025 season finale when the draws for the ATP 500 events in Basel and Vienna were released Saturday. Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are the three players who have qualified for the singles field in Turin.

The biggest highlight of the Serbian’s season came in Geneva, where he won his 100th tour-level title. He became just the third man in the Open Era to reach the milestone alongside Jimmy Connors (109) and Federer (103).

QUIZ ANSWERS