Carlos Alcaraz will end the year as the men's world No 1 after Rafael Nadal was eliminated from the ATP Finals following Casper Ruud's win over Taylor Fritz in their round-robin match in Turin on Tuesday.
Spaniard Nadal needed to win the tournament to take the rankings top spot from compatriot Alcaraz, but straight-set losses to Fritz on Sunday and Felix Auger-Aliassime earlier on Tuesday left him needing Ruud to lose in straight sets to keep his hopes alive.
The Norwegian, however, won the first set 6-3 against Fritz, capitalising on his much improved serve.
Fritz responded to take the second and it was anyone's match in the third-set tiebreak when Ruud let a 5-1 lead slip away and an energised Fritz levelled at 6-6 in their first career meeting.
But Ruud kept his composure and sealed the 6-3 4-6 7-6(6) win on his third match point to reach the semi-finals of the tournament for the second consecutive year.
"It was a close one," said Ruud, who next month will compete at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship (MWTC) in Abu Dhabi. "I guess we were both nervous there at the end but luckily I was able to pull through."
The 19-year-old Alcaraz, who is not competing at the tournament due to an abdominal injury and will also be in Abu Dhabi for MWTC, will be confirmed as the youngest year-end No 1 since the ATP rankings began in 1973.
With his 6-3, 6-4 loss to Canada's Auger-Aliassime, the record 22-time Grand Slam champion Nadal has now lost four successive ATP Tour matches for the first time since 2009.
Auger-Aliassime, now coached by Nadal's uncle and long-time mentor Toni who sat in his box, will face Fritz in his final group match with a chance of making the last four.
"I had one match to get used to the conditions and I felt my game was better today, I was hitting it with precision and consistency," Auger-Aliassime said.
It was a disappointing display by Nadal who looked rusty having played only one tournament since the US Open.
"There are a couple of positive things. I was able to play two tournaments in the past three weeks. That's a positive, something that I was not able to do for a while," Nadal said.
"I don't think I forgot how to play tennis, how to be strong enough mentally. I just need to recover all these positive feelings and all this confidence and all this strong mentality that I need to be at the level that I want to be.
"I don't know if I going to reach that level again. But what I don't have any doubt is that I (am) going to die for it."
Nadal held the upper hand at times in the first set and twice threatened to break the serve of his opponent, who was beaten by Ruud on his tournament debut on Sunday.
Serving at 3-4, Nadal led 40-0 but a couple of double faults and baseline errors allowed Auger-Aliassime to break.
Auger-Aliassime, who has won four titles this season, sealed the first set with a solid hold and moved a break ahead early in the second when Nadal stumbled trying to serve and volley.
Nadal showed the odd flash of brilliance but could make no impression as he slumped to a defeat.
Auger-Aliassime and Fritz, who have both won one of their opening two matches and are playing in the tournament for the first time, will face off on Thursday with the winner advancing to the semis.
Although eliminated, Nadal will still play Ruud in the night match on Thursday.
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Match info
Uefa Champions League Group C
Liverpool v Napoli, midnight
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Rain Management
Year started: 2017
Based: Bahrain
Employees: 100-120
Amount raised: $2.5m from BitMex Ventures and Blockwater. Another $6m raised from MEVP, Coinbase, Vision Ventures, CMT, Jimco and DIFC Fintech Fund
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Napoleon
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Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Results
1. Mathieu van der Poel (NED) Alpecin-Fenix - 3:45:47
2. David Dekker (NED) Jumbo-Visma - same time
3. Michael Morkov (DEN) Deceuninck-QuickStep
4. Emils Liepins (LAT) Trek-Segafredo
5. Elia Viviani (ITA) Cofidis
6. Tadej Pogacar (SLO UAE Team Emirates
7. Anthony Roux (FRA) Groupama-FDJ
8. Chris Harper (AUS) Jumbo-Visma - 0:00:03
9. Joao Almeida (POR) Deceuninck-QuickStep
10. Fausto Masnada (ITA) Deceuninck-QuickStep
Mia Man’s tips for fermentation
- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut
- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.
- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.
- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Barbie
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
Mubadala World Tennis Championship 2018 schedule
Thursday December 27
Men's quarter-finals
Kevin Anderson v Hyeon Chung 4pm
Dominic Thiem v Karen Khachanov 6pm
Women's exhibition
Serena Williams v Venus Williams 8pm
Friday December 28
5th place play-off 3pm
Men's semi-finals
Rafael Nadal v Anderson/Chung 5pm
Novak Djokovic v Thiem/Khachanov 7pm
Saturday December 29
3rd place play-off 5pm
Men's final 7pm
