Opening victory for the German?
The 2025 ATP Finals are calling! The season’s top eight players are in Turin, with around $5 million in slightly early Christmas money awaiting the winner.
The German is seeded number 3 in the tournament, even though he scored significantly fewer points in 2025 than the two higher-ranked players, Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz and Italy’s Jannik Sinner. However, the Hamburg native’s form curve showed a noticeable upward trend at the end of the season.
Last month, he reached the final of the tournament in Vienna and then the semifinals of the Masters in Paris. His two defeats in these competitions were both against Jannik Sinner, one of the two aforementioned top players of the season. For the upcoming duel between Alexander Zverev and Ben Shelton at the Inalpi Arena, the forecast also points to a victory for the German.
Alexander Zverev – Ben Shelton Head-to-head record
Zverev and Shelton have faced each other four times in their careers so far – and the Hamburg native has always come out on top. The two pros have met twice on hard court, and in their first duel of this kind in Cincinnati in August last year, the world number 3 lost the only set in this pairing so far.
Furthermore, the German defeated the Atlanta pro this year in the final in Munich, among other matches, when Zverev won his only title on this year’s ATP Tour. For the upcoming match between Alexander Zverev and Ben Shelton, the odds are once again stacked against the American.
Alexander Zverev – Ben Shelton Tip
Things could have been worse for Alex Zverev in the ATP Finals group draw. Although he will once again face last year’s winner Jannik Sinner, who defeated him twice in the last two weeks, the other two opponents in the preliminary round are manageable from the German’s point of view.
This includes his opening opponent Ben Shelton, whom he has never lost to in four matches. The American is participating in the tournament for the first time and therefore has less experience than Zverev, who is the third German after Boris Becker and Michael Stich to have won the tournament.
Zverev has even triumphed twice in Turin, most recently in 2021, which quickly makes it clear that the tournament at the end of the annual season suits him well. In addition, after a mixed season, he played stronger again in the last two tournaments on hard court in Vienna and Paris.
Admittedly, the last defeat against Sinner a week ago was particularly painful, as it was a very clear 0-6, 1-6, but Zverev was also physically injured in the match in Paris. Now we expect to see a fitter player from Hamburg. For Alexander Zverev’s opening match against Ben Shelton, we therefore consider the betting odds on him winning to be worth recommending.
