The 11 men who earned most ATP Ranking points during Sinner’s ban. Zverev down in 10th
Jannik Sinner is set to return to action following his three-month suspension, but his main challengers for his No 1 ranking fumbled spectacularly while he was sidelined.
When Sinner’s ban started on February 9, he had 11,830 points with Alexander Zverev on 8,135, Carlos Alcaraz on 7,510 and the rest of the chasing pack further adrift in the ATP Rankings.
With all players also dropping points from the corresponding period 12 months ago, it meant Zverev had to earn 2,495 points to pass Sinner while he was banned while Alcaraz had to make up 3,721 points during that period if he was to return to No 1.
But the three-time Grand Slam winner returns to action at the Italian Open this week, comfortably still at the top on 9,730 points for a lead of 1,645 over Zverev with Alcaraz another 235 points behind in third place.
Alcaraz, at least, earned the second-most points during Sinner’s absence while Zverev is down in 11th.
In case you were wondering about Novak Djokovic, he is in 14th place for points earned the past three months with 680 points. His runners-up finish in Miami earned him 650 points and he only picked 30 points from four other events.
The 11 Men Who Earned Most Points During Jannik Sinner’s Ban:
11. Alex De Minaur – 900 Points
The Australian was sixth in the ATP Rankings when Sinner’s ban kicked in and he has slipped to eighth in the standings after earning 900 points from six events.
De Minaur’s best run came at the Monte Carlo Masters where he reached the semi-final to earn 400 points. He also earned 100 points in Qatar, zero in Dubai, 100 at Indian Wells, 100 at Miami, 100 in Barcelona and another 100 in Madrid.
10. Alexander Zverev – 920 Points
The German was Sinner’s closest rival, but he flopped as he won only one of the eight tournaments he entered. His BMW Open title run earned him the bulk of his points.
Zverev also earned 50 points in Buenos Aires, 100 in Rio de Janeiro, 50 in Acapulco, 10 in Indian Wells, 100 in Miami, 10 in Monte Carlo and 100 in Madrid.
9. Stefanos Tsitsipas – 1000 points
Things looked rosy for Tsitsipas when he won the Dubai Tennis Championships in February to add 500 points to his tally.
But he has disappointed in his other six events as he earned zero points at the Qatar Open, 100 at the Indian Wells Open, 50 at the Miami Open, 200 at the Monte Carlo Open, 100 at the Barcelona Open and only 50 at the Madrid Open.
The Greek was at No 11 in the rankings at the start of February, but he has slumped to No 19.
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8. Daniil Medvedev – 1010 points
Former US Open winner Medvedev has slumped out of the top 10 while Sinner was banned as he failed to win any titles despite entering seven tournaments.
His best run came at the Indian Wells Open where he picked up 400 points for reaching the semi-final. Outside of that he earned 100 in Marseille, 100 in Doha, 100 in Dubai, 10 in Miami, 100 in Monte Carlo and 200 in Madrid.
7. Holger Rune – 1230
The Dane won the Barcelona Open (500 points) and finished runner-up to Draper at the Indian Wells Open (650), but he didn’t have much joy outside of that.
He lost his opener in Buenos Aires (zero points), exited in the round of 16 in Acapulco (50), lost in the round of 65 in Miami (0) and his openers in Monte Carlo (10) and Madrid (10).
6. Lorenzo Musetti – 1250 points
Musetti may not have earned the most points, but he has been one of the stars on the ATP Tour in recent months.
The Italian finished runner-up to Alcaraz in Monte Carlo (650) and reached the semi-final in Madrid (400), but he played only two other tournaments and earned 100 points in total.
5. Jakub Mensik – 1280
The bulk of Mensik’s points (1000) came from his title run at the Miami Open when he defeated Novak Djokovic in the final.
Outside of that event, he earned 80 at Indian Wells and 200 at Madrid.
His Miami win earned him a big rankings boost as he was at No 45 at the beginning of February, but sits at No 21 in the current rankings.
4. Casper Ruud – 1360 points
Ruud was staring down the barrel just a week ago as he earned 50 points in Acapulco, 10 in Indian Wells, 100 in Miami, 100 in Monte Carlo and 100 in Barcelona.
But then it all clicked at the Madrid Open as he won his maiden ATP Masters 1000 title.
3. Francisco Cerundolo – 1415
The Argentine has been the most consistent player in the past few months as he has reached one final, three semi-finals and three quarter-finals.
Cerundolo earned 165 points for finishing runner-up at the ATP 250 Buenos Aires Open, 100 in Rio, 100 in Santiago, 200 in Indian Wells, 200 in Miami, 50 in Monte Carlo, 200 in Munich and 400 in Madrid.
2. Carlos Alcaraz – 1840
The four-time Grand Slam winner’s hopes of replacing Sinner at No 1 basically ended at the Sunshine Double as his title defence was ended in the semi-final at the Indian Wells Open (400) before a second-round exit in Miami (10).
But he bounced back by winning the Monte Carlo Masters (1000) and also earned 100 points in Doha and 330 in Barcelona before missing the Madrid Open due to injury.
1. Jack Draper – 2090
Not too many would have predicted that Jack Draper would be the man to earn the most points during Sinner’s absence.
It has been a stunning few weeks for the British No 1 as he started his campaign with a runners-up trophy at the Qatar Open (330), he then won his maiden ATP Masters 1000 event at the Indian Wells Open before exiting in the second round of the Miami Open (10).
He then reached the round of 16 in Monte Carlo (100) before finishing runner-up to Ruud in Madrid.
