PAW Players
The Top 16 players of 2018 Championship Race are automatically qualified to the ATP Finals 2018.
Alternate players who finished the Championship Race in 17th place or lower, may post their picks for the tournament in case someone from the Top 16 does not play. If a player in the Top 16 has not posted picks by the end of Day 3 of play, they will be replaced by the next available alternate in order of 2018 Championship Race ranking. Once replaced, players cannot re-enter the tournament.
Thank you
@jervisjames for preparing for us PAW Players bios
Qualified
1st –
@gux representing Belarus, gux debuts here in London as the 106th player to play the ATP World PAW Finals. He started playing on the tour in 2017 and has been a dominant force throughout 2018.
Summary – Grand Slams: 3rd in Roland Garros, 4th at Wimbledon, 5th on Flushing Meadows. Masters: Win in Monte Carlo, 3rd in Madrid. ATP500 Win in Dubai. ATP250 Win in Stuttgart, 2 x 3rd places.
gux has dominated throughout 2018. He started the year well with a 3rd place in week 2 in Auckland and followed up with a top 10 finish at the Australian Open. 1 month later he took the title in Dubai and again 6 weeks later in Monte Carlo. He followed that up with 3rd places in Madrid, Lyon and Roland Garros and grabbed the title at Stuttgart the following week. With a strong 4th place at the Wimbleon, it was hard to imagine anyone catching gux by the end of the year being a clear 500 points ahead of all other contenders. gux then relaxed a little up to the US Open, gained 5th place there and coasted to the end finishing with a respectable top 8 place in Paris. Who knows what gux can bring the first time at the Finals, being top qualifier with all that pressure and expectation.
2nd –
@rusca_djokerfan representing Croatia along with teammate Edy., rusca_djokerfan qualifies for the Finals for the 3rd year in a row, however had to withdraw last year being unable to get to London.
Summary – Grand Slam: Roland Garros 4th place, Masters Win in Cincinnati and 2 x 3rd, ATP500 Win in Basel and 2nd in Hamburg, ATP250 Win in Metz and 1 x 3rd.
rusca_djokerfan has been driven this year after the disappointment of not being able to make London last year, he has been a force to be reckoned with. He hopes to do better than the 4th place from 2016, and believes in himself that he can considering qualifying in 2nd just behind gux. rusca_djokerfan is another player who loves the pressure of the big tournaments, performing extremely well at all the Majors (4th in Roland Garros) as well as taking home the winners trophies in Cincinnati, Basel and Metz. 3rd places in Rome and Toronto and a 2nd place in Hamburg set rusca_djokerfans journey to the Finals as smooth sailing.
3rd –
@Trmooney888 representing USA, Trmooney888 has made the Finals for the 5th year in a row in 2018 and has qualified in top 4 spots for the last 4 years. He defends 3rd place from 2017, which will be difficult with this year’s field.
Summary – Grand Slam: US Open 4th, Masters 2 x 4th, ATP500 Wins in Halle and Tokyo and 1 x 2nd, ATP250 Win Sofia and 1 x 2nd.
Trmooney888 knows when to peak, with top performances at a majority of the Slams, Masters and ATP500 events, Trmooney888 will be one of the favourites here in London. He performed solidly all year, with no slumps to note except perhaps the Australian heat in Sydney and Melbourne may have troubled him slightly. Trmooney definitely favours the North American summer, but loves the grass too.
4th –
@igmIGM representing the Ukraine, igmIGM is here for the 7th year in a row, joining Hellcat, kondrashov and Wojtek as one of the oldies in the field. igmIGM placed 11th last year and hopes to match some past performances in top 3.
Summary – Grand Slam: 2nd at US Open, Masters 1 each 2nd 3rd 4th & 5th, ATP500 1 x 3rd, ATP250 3 x 3rd
igmIGM began the year with good performances leading up to Wimbledon and then he stepped up and made his move toward the latter part of the year. Solid performances all year at the Masters events and gaining runner-up at Cincinnati led to igmIGM performing brilliantly at US Open, getting the runner-up trophy. The last 6 weeks of the tour saw igmIGM get no worse than 5th place in 5 of those tournaments! A solid performer who is in best form right now.
5th –
@Bolivero representing Colombia, Bolivero debuts here and is the 107th PAW player to do so. Also, this is Bolivero’s first season and it has been a surprise to see the young South American do so well.
Summary – Grand Slam: 2nd in Wimbledon, Masters Title in Shanghai, ATP500 Title in Barcelona and 2 x 3rd, ATP250 Title in Stockholm.
Well Bolivero has proven himself a strong contender at this year’s Finals, with a win at Shanghai and following that up with another win in Stockholm. He performed really well during the Spring with good results through to Barcelona where he won his first Title. Having 2 weeks off and missing Madrid, he slogged away and got his second breakthrough at Wimbledon where he met Wojtek in the final and took home the Runners-up trophy. Bolivero boosts the interest of many young players wanting to enter PAW and will be a player to watch in this and subsequent years.
6th –
@Wojtek representing Poland, this is Wojtek’s 6th ATP World PAW Finals qualification in 9 years, after just missing out in 2017, he will be looking to make a strong showing like in his first 4 appearances. Wojtek won this title in 2012.
Summary – Grand Slam Titlist at Wimbledon and 3rd at US Open, Masters 1 x 4th, ATP500 1 x 3rd, ATP250 2 x 2nd.
This year Wojtek had a turbulent time on tour taking some time to warm up and getting 4th place in Miami. Wojtek took to the grass season like a duck to water and played brilliantly in the lead up to Wimbledon and then taking the Salubrious Championship Title on the grass. A few more hiccups along the way before focusing for a solid 3rd place at the US Open, consolidating his place in London.
7th –
@slazlo also representing Poland, this is slazlo’s 2nd attempt at the PAW World Finals and as this years host we expect a good performance on the courts here. Slazlo was 16th last year, so by turning up he has already defended his ranking points and can only increase!
Summary – Masters – 2 x 2nd, 1 x 3rd. ATP500 – Hamburg Title, 2 x 2nd, 2 x 3rd, ATP250 - Shenzhen Title and 3 x 3rd.
Unlike a number of others on the Tour, slazlo hasn’t been able to perform well at the Grand Slams, although did get a top 10 in US Open. Where slazlo exceeds is solid performances week after week. After the Australian Open, slazlo managed 8 tournaments in a row where he was placed in the top 3 (the 8th was an 8th placing at Indian Wells Masters). A similar pattern after Wimbledon and again after US Open with 2 Titles coming his way in Hamburg and Shenzhen. Slazlo has nothing to lose this year, so all other contenders should watch out.
8th –
@Hellcat representing Great Britain, this is Hellcat’s 9th year running at the World Tour Finals! With no worse than 6th place in the past 5 years, can Hellcat finally take home the trophy this year. He is defending the points for Runner-up which he achieved last year.
Summary – Masters 2 x 2nd and 1 x 4th, ATP500 1 x 3rd, ATP250 2 x 2nd and 1 x 3rd.
Hellcat is one of 3 finalists this year who were unable to attain a title. That said, Hellcat is one of the most consistent players there is and has 9 years of being in the finals to prove it. Strong performances in most of the Slams and Masters is what it takes to be a top player if you want to emulate Hellcat. Doing well at a number of tournaments throughout the year, Hellcat has reached his form with 3 x 2nd places in the past 4 tournaments, 2 being Masters (Shanghai and Paris). Hot Hot Hot, look out for Hellcat.
9th –
@kondrashov also representing Russia, kondrashov returns for the 8th year in a row to the ATP World PAW Finals. He is one of the favourites here with his record of never being lower than 5th place. Kondrashov is defending the points of 4th place this year.
Summary – Masters 2 x 3rd, ATP500 1 Title (Vienna) and 1 x 3rd, ATP250 2 x 2nd and 1 x 3rd.
Kondrashov started the year in great form making top 3 in 5 tournaments out of 10. He maintained a steady year throughout and then finished strongly with a Title in Vienna and 3rd in Paris (last 2 weeks of the season). Kondrashov always performs well at the Grand Slams but was unlucky this year not to make a top 5 spot in any of the majors. He still gained plenty of points from solid results.
10th –
@pazo77 representing Bulgaria, after an awesome debut last year and holding the #1 ranking for many weeks, pazo77 returns for the 2nd time and defends the Championship.
Summary – Grand Slam 3rd in Wimbledon, ATP500 2 x 2nd, ATP250 3 Titles, 1 x 2nd, 1 x 3rd.
Pazo77 had a dream run in 2017 with 6 Titles, he was close again this year gaining 3 titles in Auckland, Estoril and Winston-Salem all being ATP250’s. He started the year with 3rd place in Pune and ended with 3 second placings in Shenzhen, Beijing and Basel. He triumphed with a 3rd place at Wimbledon plus had a great result (top 8) in Australian Open. Pazo77 has had to learn a little humility this year, it has proven not to be as easy as he thought to back up the results from a great year previously. Can he prove himself and be the first to successfully defend the ATP World PAW Finals Title?!
11th –
@NextGenKing representing Ireland, NextGenKing debuts at the ATP Finals in 2018, he is the 108th player to have this honour.
Summary – Masters 2 x 2nd and 1 x 4th, ATP500 1 x 2nd
It is remarkable how quickly NextGenKing established himself as a contender this year. He joined the professional PAW ranks in week 16, exploding through and gaining the runner-up trophy in Monte Carlo, 4 weeks later he did it again in Rome. NextGenKing performed spectacularly in Wimbledon and US Open (top 8 in both) and finished strong with the last 3 weeks of the year – 4th in Moscow, 2nd in Vienna and 4th in Paris. With only 25 tournaments under his belt, NextGenKing was still able to qualify in 11th here with only a handful of tournaments reaping less than 50 ranking points. This up and comer will definitely be a thorn in the side of the seasoned players.
12th –
@digor representing Russia, this is digor’s 5th year in a row at the ATP Finals after last year sneaking in as 1st reserve. Digor came 3rd in 2016 and would love to equal or better that feat this year. He is defending 8th place points.
Summary – Masters 1 Title (Paris), ATP500 2 x 2nd, ATP250 1 x 2nd
Digor is solid when playing the Grand Slams taking a lot of ranking points with him. He started well this year along with his countryman Medvedev in Sydney. Later, he managed another 2nd place at Barcelona and later still again 2nd in Washington. Digor was fighting for a place to qualify here in the last event of the season at Paris, but did it in style by winning and climbing from 16th to 12th in the race.
13th –
@Elly the young lady representing Canada, Elly is also returning for the 3rd year in a row at the ATP Finals, with a 13th and 12th place, will Elly bring it this year!
Summary – Masters: 1 Title (Rome) and 1 x 4th place, ATP250 – 1 Title, 1 x 2nd and 1 x 3rd place.
Despite only a handful of top 3 finishes this year, Elly has had solid and consistent performances all year. She gained 2 titles this year (Rome and Marrakesh) adding to the 5 won from previous years. Elly performs well at the majors and masters and is rarely seen in the bottom half of the leaderboard week in, week out. Elly consolidated her place in the ATP Finals with a 4th place finish at Shanghai. Elly is the only woman at the PAW finals this year (I THINK?) and will give the men a run for their money!
14th –
@Markmik representing Australia, Markmik debuts at the ATP World PAW Finals as the 109th player to do so.
Summary – Grand Slams, WIN Roland Garros and 3rd place at Australian Open, ATP250s – 1 Title, 1 x 3rd place.
Markmik is a show court player, he thrives on the adrenalin of the big courts and has the results to prove it. Winner at Roland Garros and 3rd at Aus Open, he also plays solid PAW at the Masters tournaments. Markmik also won a title at Munich and followed the Aus Open with another 3rd place the week after. Unfortunately, Markmik is Fognini-esque when not on centre court and perhaps anything less than a Masters is just a hit and giggle game to him hehe
15th -
@Edy. Representing Croatia, Edy. Returns for the 3rd year running and defends 5th place points this year.
Summary – Grand Slams – 2nd at Roland Garros, Masters – 1 Title (IW), ATP250 – 1 Title
Edy. Has had an eventful year with injury conerns the past few weeks in the lead up to ATP Finals. Edy. Showed his capability at the first Masters tournament in Indian Wells this year by winning the title, later going on to be runner-up at Roland Garros and also a few weeks later winning in Umag. Good showing in US Open and Wimbledon also helped Edy. to make the finals here.
16th –
@rjd representing Argentina, rjd is back again after qualifying 16th in 2016. Rjd hopes to improve on their 12th place finish at the ATP Finals from that year.
Summary – ATP250’s – 1 Title, 3 x 3rds.
Rjd started the year solidly with a top 5 finish at the Australian Open and a 3rd place the following week. A number of weeks later taking out Houston and then another 3rd place in Estoril. For the remainder of the year rjd has been steady in gaining ranking points and was able to hold off 2 other South Americans in Shanghai to qualify here.
Alternates
first reserve - nachotuerto
second reserve - Daniel_amr
third reserve - Mighty Hams
fourth reserve - Ezequiel Pereyra
Good luck everyone.
