ATP Rankings: Novak Djokovic still rules, but Jannik Sinner can close gap while Carlos Alcaraz in danger of slipping away
Novak Djokovic has started his 422nd week at the top of the ATP Rankings, but Jannik Sinner has a big opportunity to start putting big pressure on the Serbian for the world No 1 ranking.
Currently in his 11th spell at No 1, Djokovic has been top of the rankings since September last year as he replaced Carlos Alcaraz as No 1 on the back of lifting the US Open title.
The good news for the 24-time Grand Slam winner is that he will stay there for at least another three weeks, which would take him to 425 weeks, but his decision to skip the Madrid Open has opened the door for Sinner.
Djokovic enjoys a 1,330-point advantage at the top, but Sinner will feature in the Spanish capital and a deep run could see him breathe down the tennis great’s neck at the Italian Open.
If Sinner ends up winning the Madrid title, then he could go head-to-head with Djokovic for the No 1 ranking in Rome.
Sinner has opened a 515-point lead over Carlos Alcaraz in third place and that gap is likely to grow over the next fortnight. Alcaraz is the defending champion so will drop 1,000 points while Sinner didn’t play in Madrid last year.
READ MORE: Why Novak Djokovic may regret his decision to pull out of another tournament
It also leaves Alcaraz in danger of being overtaken by Daniil Medvedev with the Russian only 150 points behind in the Live Rankings.
There were no changes in the official top 10, but sixth-placed Casper Ruud managed to stay ahead of Stefanos Tsitsipas as he picked up 445 points after winning the Barcelona Open title.
Outside the top 10, Taylor Fritz is back as the American No 1 after he moved up two places to No 13 with his runners-up finish at the BMW Open in Munich with Ugo Humbert and Ben Shelton dropping one place each.
Munich winner Jan-Lennard Struff is up four places to No 24, but Marton Fucsovics is the big winner as he jumped 29 places to No 53 after winning the Romanian Open.
Four players reached new career-highs in the top 100 with Arthur Fils moving up four spots to no 32, Mariano Navone climbing 11 places to No 41, Facundo Diaz Acosta cracked the top 50 for the first time as he sits at No 47 after jumping six places while Francisco Comesana makes his top 100 debut at No 96 after surging 19 places.
ATP Rankings Top 20
1. Novak Djokovic Serbia – 9,990 points
2. Jannik Sinner Italy – 8,660
3. Carlos Alcaraz Spain – 8,145
4. Daniil Medvedev – 7,085
5. Alexander Zverev Germany – 5,425
6. Casper Ruud Norway – 4,480
7. Stefanos Tsitsipas Greece – 4,030
8. Andrey Rublev – 3,830
9. Hubert Hurkacz Poland – 3,675
10. Grigor Dimitrov Bulgaria – 3,640
11. Alex de Minaur Australia – 3,510
12. Holger Rune Denmark – 3,395
13. Ugo Humbert France – 2,535
14. Ben Shelton United States – 2,490
15. Taylor Fritz United States – 2,450
16. Tommy Paul United States – 2,350
17. Karen Khachanov – 2,115
18. Alexander Bublik Kazakhstan – 1,992
19. Sebastian Baez, Argentina – 1,955
20. Adrian Mannarino France – 1,875
