- The Nitto ATP Finals 2022 will continue the following day.
- In the very first match of the day, Nadal and Ruud will compete against one another.
Please continue below for match odds, a preview, and a prediction of the best bet. - The 2022 Nitto ATP Finals continue with the group stages of the tournament. Tomorrow morning at 8 o’clock Eastern Time, Nadal and Ruud will compete against each other in a match.
After suffering consecutive defeats, however, the 22-time Grand Slam winner will not advance out of the group stages of the competition.
After suffering a couple of defeats, Nadal is no longer considered the favorite in the matches that he plays, and now Ruud is the favorite at a -220 odds.
Nadal is Competing for the Sake of Pride
The 36-year-old player faced off against the American Taylor Fritz in the first round of the tournament and was unable to take a set from him. Fritz simply took complete control after the first set went to a tiebreak, and Nadal was unable to catch up to him. He ended up losing by scores of 6(3)-7(7) and 1-6.
He faced the young Canadian superstand Felix Auger-Aliassime in his second match, and he was unable to find any momentum against him. The tennis that Auger-Aliassime was playing was very crisp and tight, and he was able to break Nadal’s serve early on in the match to take the lead. Strangely, it was Nadal’s serve that was causing him to lose a lot of points, and he couldn’t figure out why this was happening to him.
Nadal ultimately suffered a defeat by scores of 3-6 and 4-6, and as a result, he is no longer in the running for the top four spots.
Rafael Nadal vs Casper Ruud Odds
| Player | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| [1] Rafael Nadal | 1/1 | +175 | Ov 21.5 (-160) |
| [3] Casper Ruud | 15/1 | -220 | Un 21.5 (+115) |
Ruud Continues On
The 23-year-old player, in contrast to his opponent, has advanced to the semifinal round of the competition. He began his tournament with a match against Felix Auger-Aliassime, which he won 7(7)-6(4), 6-4, and then moved on to compete against Taylor Fritz.
In his match against Fritz, Ruud got off to a good start and jumped out to an early lead, but the two of them then went back and forth exchanging points. Ruud was able to squeak out a victory in the match, which was decided after three sets, by serving up 14 aces and committing only three double faults. Although it is impressive that his opponent managed 15 aces while committing no double faults, Ruud was able to play better than him in other aspects of the match. Ruud went onto win 6-3, 4-6, 7(8)-6 (6).
The Second Professional Acquaintance
Nadal and Ruud will be meeting for the second time in their professional careers and for the second time in 2018. The only other time these two players have faced each other was in the championship match of the French Open this year, which Nadal won and went on to win for the 14th time overall.
Nadal vs Ruud Pick
The Norwegian has a little bit more to play for now that Nadal is eliminated from the competition, as Ruud has already secured a spot in the final four of the tournament. While Nadal is just trying to end the year on a high note, he will focus on maintaining his form to the best of his ability.
But in all honesty, Ruud is currently playing some of the best tennis of his career, whereas Nadal hasn’t appeared even to come close to his level of play this week.
It seems likely that Ruud will emerge victorious in this match, evening out the score in their head-to-head competition in the process. However, you shouldn’t be too surprised if Nadal wins a set.
Best Bet: Casper Ruud 2-1 (+250); Over 2.5 sets (+115)
