Frances Tiafoe stands seventh in the race for the Nitto ATP Finals, with five places still open, and his name is in none of this week’s three ATP draws. The men around him are all top seeds with first-round byes: Flavio Cobolli in Lyon, Daniil Medvedev in Almaty and Arthur Fils in Brussels.
Tiafoe’s last match was in the third round in Shanghai, where Alejandro Davidovich Fokina saved a match point against him on the way to the title. No reason for his absence this week has been announced.
The standings. After Shanghai the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin reads: Alexander Zverev 9,150 (qualified), Jannik Sinner 7,950 (out for the rest of 2026), Carlos Alcaraz 4,600 (qualified), Ben Shelton 4,480 (qualified), Cobolli 3,540, Medvedev 3,420, Tiafoe 3,380, Fils 3,325, Rafael Jodar 3,159 and Alex de Minaur 2,880. With Sinner’s season over, ninth place is effectively the last qualifying position, and Jodar holds it.
Shelton is the third man into the field. He is going back to Turin for a second straight year after going 0-3 in the round robin on his debut last November.
Medvedev. He climbed two places to sixth by reaching the Shanghai semifinals, his third Masters 1000 semifinal of the season, beating Stefanos Tsitsipas and Tommy Paul on the way. The 2020 champion qualified every year from 2019 to 2024 and missed out last year. He is the defending champion in Almaty, where he beat Corentin Moutet 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 in last year’s final, and opens against Sho Shimabukuro or qualifier Roman Safiullin.
Cobolli. Fifth in the Race and chasing a first appearance, Cobolli would make his debut in front of a home crowd in Turin. His season includes the Roland Garros final, the Cincinnati semifinals, the Wimbledon quarterfinals and the Acapulco title. In Lyon, a new ATP 250 at the LDLC Arena, he opens against wild card Stan Wawrinka or Martin Landaluce.
Fils. Eighth on 3,325, Fils is the top seed at the European Open and opens against Jaume Munar, who beat qualifier Federico Cina 6-4, 6-3 on Monday. Brussels is also where David Goffin plays the last tournament of his career this week.
The chasers. Paul won three straight-sets matches in Shanghai before losing a three-setter to Medvedev in the quarterfinals, and is up two places to 12th on 2,585. He is the fourth seed in Lyon and opens against Benjamin Bonzi or Cameron Norrie. A Lyon title is worth 250 points; he trails Jodar by 574. Davidovich Fokina is 16th on 2,450 after his Shanghai title. Neither Jodar nor de Minaur is in a draw this week.
What’s next. The ATP 500s in Vienna and Basel follow next week, then the Rolex Paris Masters. The Nitto ATP Finals are played at the Inalpi Arena in Turin from 15 to 22 November. For how the places are settled, including what happens when a qualifier withdraws, see our Race to Turin guide and ATP Finals alternates explainer. Event details are in our Lyon, Almaty, European Open, Vienna, Basel and Paris Masters guides.
