· Daily on ESPN3 November 9-16 from London; 10 Hours on ESPN2 November 13-16
· Djokovic Holds Slim Lead Heading into Elite Final Event of 2014
· Top-Ranked Bryan Brothers Seek Fourth Doubles Title
Top-ranked and three-time champion Novak Djokovic and six-time winner Roger Federer – each vying to be the year-end No. 1-ranked player – lead the field at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals starting Sunday, Nov. 9, and live daily on ESPN3. ESPN2 joins with matches from Thursday, Nov. 13, to the championship live Sunday, Nov. 16, at 1 p.m. ET. The McEnroe Brothers – John and Patrick – will call the action on ESPN2 from London’s 02 Arena with Darren Cahill contributing from the sideline. ESPN3 will also present the weeklong doubles competition, headlined by legendary American twin brothers Bob and Mike Bryan.
For seven days starting Sunday, Nov. 9, ESPN3 will start at 7 a.m., with the doubles championship Sunday, Nov. 16 at 10:30 a.m.
ESPN2 will televise a singles match live Thursday and Friday at 3 p.m., plus the singles semifinals Sunday at 5 a.m. (played Saturday, live on ESPN3 at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.) and the championship live Sunday at 1 p.m.
All the action on ESPN2 and ESPN3 is also available through WatchESPN online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app and streamed on televisions through ESPN on Xbox LIVE to Gold members, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Roku.
Event Format
The eight players/doubles teams are divided into two groups. All play round-robin matches against opponents in their group to determine a winner and runner-up from each group, who advance to the knockout stage of the tournament. For the semifinals, the winner of Group A plays the runner-up of Group B and the winner of Group B plays the runner-up of Group A. Those two winners meet in the Championship. All matches are best-of-three sets.
Battle for No. 1
- Djokovic and Federer each head to London hoping to leave with the coveted designation as the year-end No. 1 player in the world. If Federer is No. 1 after the ATP World Tour Finals he will retain the ranking heading into the Australian Open in January, and by then would be the oldest man ever to hold the top spot (record currently held by Andre Agassi: 33 years, 4 months).
- For the Serb, it would be the third time in four years he has finished the year atop the standings. For the Swiss, it would be his sixth such feat (tying Pete Sampras’ record), but first since 2009 (he last was No. 1 in November 2012, but did not finish the year as No. 1).
- If they play (being in different round-robin groups, it can only be in a semifinal or the Championship), it would be their 37th meeting, tying Ivan Lendl/John McEnroe for second-most in the ATP’s Open Era (Djokovic/Nadal have played 42 times). Federer leads the matchup 19-17, including three of five meetings this year. Djokovic’s two wins, however, came in finals – Indian Wells and Wimbledon.
Surveying the Field
With No. 3 Rafael Nadal sidelined by appendicitis, the field includes three rookies.
Group A:
- As well as year-end honors, the top-ranked Djokovic seeks a third straight title and fourth overall at the event.
- 4 Stan Wawrinka reached the semis in his first appearance a year ago and is looking to bookend his up-and-down year with breakthrough championships, having captured his first Major crown in Australia.
- 6 Tomas Berdcyh is making his fifth consecutive appearance.
- 9 Marin Cilic is hoping to take the momentum from his maiden Major crown at the US Open to his debut at the World Tour Finals.
Group B:
- Federer is a close second in the rankings and playing in a record-breaking 13th consecutive World Tour Finals. In addition to his six wins at the event, he has been runner-up twice.
- Local favorite No. 6 Andy Murray has reached the semifinals in three of his previous five appearances.
- 5 Kei Nishikori, the US Open runnerup, and No. 8 Milos Raonic are both making their first appearance at the event.
In doubles, the top-ranked Bryan Brothers will be seeking their fourth year-end ATP crown, to go with their long list of career accomplishments. This year’s US Open was Bob and Mike’s 16th major title, a record fifth in New York and a ground-breaking 100th doubles title as a team (now 102). Like the singles, doubles matches start Sunday, Nov. 9, and conclude with the championship a week later with all the action on ESPN3.
ESPN and the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, London
| Date | Time (ET) | Match | Network |
| Sun, Nov 9 | 7 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin
Julien Benneteau / Edouard Roger-Vasselin vs. Marcel Granollers / Marc Lopez |
ESPN3 |
| 9 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin
Kei Nishikori vs. Andy Murray |
ESPN3 | |
| 1 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin
Daniel Nestor / Nenad Zimonjic vs. Ivan Dodig / Marcelo Melo |
ESPN3 | |
| 3 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin
Roger Federer vs. Milos Raonic |
ESPN3 | |
| Mon, Nov 10 | 7 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin
Alexander Peya / Bruno Soares vs. Jean-Julien Rojer / Horia Tecau |
ESPN3 |
| 9 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin
Stan Wawrinka vs. Tomas Berdych |
ESPN3 | |
| 1 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin
Bob Bryan / Mike Bryan vs. Lukasz Kubot / Robert Lindstedt |
ESPN3 | |
| 3 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin
Novak Djokovic vs. Marin Cilic |
ESPN3 | |
| Tue, Nov 11 | 7 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin | ESPN3 |
| 9 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin | ESPN3 | |
| 1 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin | ESPN3 | |
| 3 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin | ESPN3 | |
| Wed, Nov 12 | 7 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin | ESPN3 |
| 9 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin | ESPN3 | |
| 1 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin | ESPN3 | |
| 3 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin | ESPN3 | |
| Thur, Nov 13 | 7 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin | ESPN3 |
| 9 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin | ESPN3 | |
| 1 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin | ESPN3 | |
| 3 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin | ESPN2
ESPN3 |
|
| Fri, Nov 14 | 7 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin | ESPN3 |
| 9 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin | ESPN3 | |
| 12:45 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Round Robin | ESPN3 | |
| 3 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Round Robin | ESPN2
ESPN3 |
|
| Sat, Nov 15 | 7 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Semifinal #1 | ESPN3 |
| 9 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Semifinal #1 | ESPN3 | |
| 1 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Semifinal #2 | ESPN3 | |
| 3 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Semifinal #2 | ESPN3 | |
| Sun, Nov 16 | 5 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Semifinals | ESPN2 – * |
| 10:30 a.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Doubles Championship | ESPN3 | |
| 1 p.m. | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – Singles Championship | ESPN2
ESPN3 |
* – Tape delayed from Saturday, live on ESPN3.
ESPN – All Four Slams, All In One Place
Tennis has been part of ESPN since its first week on the air and provided many memorable moments, but it has never been as important as today, with the US Open joining the lineup in 2009, giving ESPN all four Grand Slam events, something no other U.S. network has ever done, let alone in one year. ESPN has presented the Australian Open since 1984, the French Open since 2002 (plus 1986 – 1993), and Wimbledon since 2003, with exclusivity for live television with all other rights extended in a 12-year agreement starting in 2012. Exclusivity for the US Open in an 11-year agreement begins in 2015. ESPN3 delivers an unmatched multi-screen presentation of the sport’s four majors, all ATP 1000 and 500 tournaments, WTA Premier Events and season-ending championships for both tours.
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