Novak Djokovic’s No 1 ranking under serious threat from Jannik Sinner after latest move
Novak Djokovic’s decision to withdraw from the Madrid Open has left him vulnerable at the top of the ATP Rankings with Jannik Sinner in prime position to take advantage in the coming weeks.
World No 1 Djokovic opted to skip the ATP Masters 1000 event with organisers only stating that he pulled out of the tournament for “non-medical reasons”.
It is the second consecutive year that the tennis great has opted to skip the trip to the Spanish capital so the good news in terms of the rankings is he won’t drop any points next week.
Djokovic currently sits on 9,990 points in the Live Rankings and he will remain on that tally after the Madrid Open.
Top 3 In Live ATP Rankings
1. Novak Djokovic – 9,990 points
2. Jannik Sinner – 8,660
3. Carlos Alcaraz – 8,145
And while Djokovic will start next week with a handy 1,330-point lead over second-placed Sinner with Alcaraz 515 points behind in third place, his lead at the top could be reduced significantly after the Madrid Open.
Sinner is the man poised to strike as the Italian also doesn’t have any points to defend at the ATP Masters 1000 event while Alcaraz is facing an uphill task as he is the defending champion.
READ MORE: Uncertainty over Novak Djokovic’s next move as he skips another major event
Should Sinner end up being the last man standing at the Madrid Open then he will be just 330 points behind Djokovic in the rankings.
And you can’t put it past the 22-year-old as he is 24-2 in 2024 with Alcaraz and Stefanos Tsitsipas the only two players to beat him this year as the former won at the Indian Wells Open and the latter succeeded at the Monte Carlo Masters.
It will leave Djokovic in a precarious position at the Italian Open as he has 180 points to defend in Rome after reaching the quarter-final last year while Sinner will drop only 90 points putting the lead at effectively 240 points. That, of course, is dependent on Sinner winning in Madrid.
Should Sinner finish runner-up in Madrid then he will start the Italian Open with a deficit of 590 points (1,330-650+90-180) and another run to the final could also do the trick to earn him the No 1 ranking and top seed status for Roland Garros. Djokovic, though, would need to lose early.
However, even if Sinner doesn’t get the No 1 ranking before the French Open, he will get another big opportunity in Paris as Djokovic will defend 2,000 points while the Italian will only drop 45 points.
