The game hasn't reached the end of the year yet, but this was worth reporting in a rare screenshot post. First, the World Tour Finals qualifiers:
I'm dubbing the younger Kaspar Prince Karl, since Mateo is the King it seemed fitting. And he's looking to lock down the #3 spot ... but the big news here is that
Ritwik Dudwadkar has ascended to the #1 against all odds. He lost some ground in the WTC, as France moved on to the final but he only managed a split in a 4-1 defeat against the United States in the semis. Blake beat him in a five-set epic. But then came the Paris Masters, where Ritwik had made three straight QF exits, then a SF last year. This time he made the final and nearly won, a 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 loss to guess who in which he fell just short despite being slightly the better player. One would presume Kaspar will retake the top spot after the Finals, but that is suddenly an open question. It's also a very important one in terms of history ...
King Kaspar could fail to set the record for longevity in the top spot if he does not rise to the occasion here once again. Even if he does, I'm still pretty ecstatic over Dudwadkar getting to the #1 spot for however brief a time(minimum two weeks). I thought the string of Sri Lankans to hit the pinnacle of tennis was sure to be broken as I've mentioned a number of times, but at least for now it continues, and the expected Kaspar transition is interrupted. Playing spoiler against the best player to ever wield a racket is a cool thing.