After a long and tumultuous season, the ATP Finals are set to commence within the next 24 hours. However, the event that signals the end of the 11-month-long tennis season is unique among all the other tournaments that took place prior.No fear, below is a complete breakdown of this year's event and what's at stake at the 2025 Nitto ATP Finals in Turin, Italy.FormatThe ATP Finals is unique among other ATP or ITF-sanctioned events due to the round-robin format of the tournament. So instead of a single-elimination method, which is used at virtually all ATP-sanctioned events, such as Grand Slams, Masters 1000s, and the Challenger circuit, the ATP Finals do not boot players out of the draw after a single loss.Instead, the eight players that take part in the event are split into two groups: the Jimmy Connors Group and the Bjorn Borg Group.Using the PIF ATP rankings from the Monday before the start of the event, the No. 1-ranked player is then placed in the Connors group and the No. 2-ranked player in the Borg Group. Then, seeds 3 and 4, 5 and 6, 7 and 8, are drawn in pairs with the first pair selected joining the 1-seed in the Connors Group.The four players then face one another, and based on their respective records, the top-2 players in each group move on to the semi-finals. In the case of more than two players having the same number of matches won in their shared group, the number of matches played would be the deciding factor.Once the semi-finals draw is set, we are back to our familiar single-elimination format with the top-ranked player from Group Connors playing the second-ranked player from Group Borg and then vice-versa for the other half of the draw. The winners of both matches play one another in the final, and then we'll have the winner of the entire event from that match.GroupsThe Jimmy Connors Group includes Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz, Alex De Minaur, and Lorenzo Musetti. The Bjorn Borg Group includes Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev, Ben Shelton, and Felix Auger-Aliassime.The Groups of this year's event took a bit longer to be set than in prior years, with Novak Djokovic pulling out of the ATP Finals on Saturday after his title win in Athens. The withdrawal came a day before the year-end finale was set to begin.Djokovic's withdrawal shakes up the tournament in many ways, with not only the absence of one of the greatest players of all time but also the danger he would present on an indoor hard-court surface regardless of his age or fatigue.The groups are now set, with Musetti replacing the 24-time Grand Slam champ in Group Connors and Felix Auger-Aliassime snatching the final spot.Schedule of PlayThis year's ATP Finals will take place from Sunday, November 9 to Sunday, November 16. The singles event will start with two scintillating matches, consisting of No. 1-seeded Carlos Alcaraz taking on Alex De Minaur, followed by Ben Shelton playing against Alexander Zverev.Day 2 will then have Lorenzo Musetti, fresh off his flight from Greece, take on Taylor Fritz, and the hometown favorite Jannik Sinner, opening his ATP Final campaign with an early test from Canada's Felix Auger-Aliassime.The remaining schedule of play will be posted on NittoATPFinals.com in the following days.Streaming and TelevisionTennis fans in the United States can watch the 2025 ATP Finals on the Tennis Channel and Tennis TV. However, fans outside of the United States can find their television and streaming listings on the ATP website.OddsBelow is a breakdown of the odds for the outright winner featuring the eight singles players as of November 9, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.Jannik Sinner -150Carlos Alcaraz +150Taylor Fritz +2200Alexander Zverev +2200Ben Shelton +2700Alex De Minaur +3000Lorenzo Musetti +3000Felix Auger-Aliassime +3000Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.More Tennis News
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