Alexander Zverev and Marin Cilic will meet each other in the robin-round of ATP Finals 2018, as the two players hope to start their campaign on a winning note.
The Alexander Zverev v Marin Cilic 2018 ATP Finals robin-round match will be played on Monday, November 12, at 2:00 pm local time (1:00 pm GMT). Watch the Alexander Zverev v Marin Cilic live streaming here.
In terms of experience, Cilic has definitely got a lot more miles in him when compared to the young German. However, Zverev, in a very short span of time, has taken the ATP Tour by storm. At just 21 years of age, he has won a total of nine titles and has been absolutely clinical throughout the season.
Zverev v Cilic Head to Head
The two players have met a total of six times on the tour so far. Zverev leads Cilic with an insurmountable 5-1 lead – a lead he picked up after picked up after defeating the Croat in their last five meetings. Cilic’s sole defeat over the German came in 2015 in the quarterfinal of ATP Washington.
Interestingly, this is going to be the second time that Cilic and Zverev will meet in the ATP Finals. They met in the exact same round a year ago and back then, the German took the victory 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. This year, they met once in the semifinal of Rome Masters. Zverev once again won that encounter – this time, in straight sets.
Zverev’s Impeccable Form in 2018
The German started the season on a rather shaky note. In his first couple of tournaments – notably Australian Open and ATP Rotterdam, he failed to move past the early rounds. However, he was quick to find his rhythm thereafter as he reached the semifinal in ATP Acapulco and the final in Miami Masters.
His clay season turned out to be far better than his early performance. Zverev won the ATP Munich and followed that win with a victorious run in the Madrid Masters. He also participated in the Italian Open where he was defeated in the final by Rafael Nadal.
After a poor showing on grass courts, he kickstarted the final leg of the season by participating in the Citi Open. He won his third title of the year there by defeating Alex de Minaur in the final. Thereafter, he spent the remainder of the season in attempts to replicate his winning runs again, but he was unsuccessful.
The World No. 5 reached the semifinal of Shanghai Masters and ATP Basel where he lost respectively to Novak Djokovic and Marius Copil.
One of the Best Performances by Cilic
Cilic started the year as the World No. 6 but soon reached his career-high singles ranking at the No. 3 position. He achieved this feat after a phenomenal run in the Australian Open, where he lost in the final to Roger Federer in five sets.
However, the 30-year-old Croatian failed to retain that momentum and followed that superb run with a couple of disappointing spells in Miami Masters and Indian Wells.
Considering his performance on clay, it was a rather decent run and he did enough to make sure that he doesn’t fall out of the top five. He achieved this feat by reaching the semifinal in the Italian Open and quarter-final in French Open. He got his first breakthrough of the season in ATP London – a tournament that he won after defeating Novak Djokovic in the final.
Subsequently, he reached the semifinal in Cincinnati Masters and the quarterfinal in US Open. His form also took a slight tumble towards the end of the season as he lost in the early rounds in Tokyo, Basel, and Shanghai.
Zverev v Cilic – Who has a Better Chance?
Between the two players, it is definitely the German who has the edge here. Zverev leads handsomely in the head-to-head tally and he also has the momentum on his side. Cilic, on the other hand, is significantly more experienced than his German counterpart and that is something Zverev will have to keep an eye out for.
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