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# ATP Paris Masters 2026 Preview and Draw
- URL: https://deep-dive-tennis.ghost.io/atp-paris-masters-2026-preview-and-draw/
- Published: 2026-11-01T12:45:59.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-01T14:15:52.000Z
- Author: Jake Davies
- Tags: Tournament Previews, Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, Djokovic, Paris Masters, Preview, Paris Masters Draw, Alexander Zverev, Ben Shelton, Mens tennis, ATP Tennis, Rafael Jodar, Daniil Medvedev, Moise Kouame

The final Masters 1000 tournament of the season is officially upon us as the ATP Paris Masters event gets underway. Lots of interesting talking points include five former champions being in the draw (Djokovic, Zverev, Khachanov, Medvedev and Rune) and the fact that there are many Turin chasers aiming to finalise their spots in the showpiece event set to take place on November 13th. Can Djokovic produce miracles to qualify for Turin for the 19th time? Will Cobolli be fit enough to finalise his presence in Turin? Can one of the outsiders sneak into the Elite Eight? I'll go through it all with you.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/03/97/03972069-b7c9-4016-8fed-44898721e372/content/images/2026/11/Screenshot-2026-11-01-at-05.04.32.png)

ATP Paris Masters 2026 main draw in singles.

**Novak Djokovic \[10\]**

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/03/97/03972069-b7c9-4016-8fed-44898721e372/content/images/2026/11/Screenshot-2026-11-01-at-05.16.46.png)

Most eyes will be on **Novak Djokovic** over the course of this tournament. Partly due to the fact he is the most decorated champion in the draw, but also due to the intrigue of whether he can pull off something unlikely once again. He will need to at least reach the semi-finals in order to stand a chance of qualification. The tennis gods have not been kind to him, though. Starting with the in-form **Valentin Vacherot** in an indoor first round is rough. But the bigger picture problem is that the Serbian has a collective group of both very physical players or very strong servers in his quarter, which means getting to the semi-final will be hard. Can he pull this one off?

**Carlos Alcaraz \[2\]**

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/03/97/03972069-b7c9-4016-8fed-44898721e372/content/images/2026/11/Screenshot-2026-11-01-at-05.37.13.png)

Despite having a season dramatically effected by a right wrist injury, Carlos Alcaraz is already signed, sealed and delivered for Turin. Alcaraz has already won the Tokyo 500 and is currently in the final of the Vienna 500 event where he takes on Australia's **Alex De Minaur**, so he is in some great form. The Spaniard does not typically perform well at this event in years gone by though and has never won the title here. One of three Masters titles that have eluded him thus far.

The loss to French qualifier Hugo Gaston in his first appearance here was surprising but he has also been defeated by **Roman Safiullin** back in 2023 and **Cameron Norrie** chopped him up this time last year. 

However, it is worth mentioning the speed of surface in Paris has changed quite a lot over the years and it generally has been treading in the direction of being a fast indoor hard court despite many years of being one of the slowest courts on the calendar. Alcaraz could get a second date with **Jiri Lehecka** in the second round. He beat the Czech in that Tokyo final several weeks back.

**Those chasing a Turin position**

Zverev, Alcaraz, Shelton and Medvedev are the four players that can breathe easy as they have booked their places in Turin. Four positions are still up for grabs. **Flavio Cobolli** is in pole position to make it, but the question is where his body is at after retiring from his Vienna second round match against compatriot **Matteo Berrettini** last week. **Arthur Fils** is the next in line, but also has injury concerns revolving around a back problem. 

**Frances Tiafoe** will need to find some form quickly in order to ensure he qualifies while De Minaur's heroics in Vienna has now changed his reality from being on the outside looking in to now having a huge possibility of sneaking into the event at the last minute. But he will need another big week, still.

Lastly, **Rafael Jodar** needs a big Paris run as he suffered a bit of a setback with an early exit in Vienna. Jodar has made huge progress in his first season on tour and recently made his first Masters final in Shanghai but now has a lot more groundwork to do off the back of losing to Vacherot the way he did.

**Stories to look out for**

**Ben Shelton** is in the second quarter as the third seed and I do not feel it will be easy for him to navigate his way through that section. Partially due to the fact he has players with history of performing well at this tournament, but he has big-servers that can get him into tough fine-margin lottery matches. 

Shelton could face the awkward Norrie in the second round and then a daunting task of **Arthur Rinderknech,** who will have the French crowd driving him forward. There are a lot of banana skins for the American.

Another emerging story is the rise of 17-year-old **Moise Kouame**. This season is definitely a breakthrough season for the youngster and he does tend to bottle up some of his best tennis for the French tournaments. After his run at the Brest Challenger, he will go into this as the most high-profile main draw wildcard. 

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/03/97/03972069-b7c9-4016-8fed-44898721e372/content/images/2026/11/Screenshot-2026-11-01-at-12.40.41.png)

My favourite first round match: Lehecka versus Michelsen