With Novak Djokovic withdrawing from Roland Garros earlier Tuesday, it is official: Jannik Sinner will the 29th player to reach #1 in the ATP rankings and the first Italian player ever to do so. After his victory at the Australian Open in January, it felt like a matter of time until Sinner became #1 and it finally happened here.
How Jannik Sinner Reached World #1
Sinner hasn’t exactly been super dominant, but he’s done enough to warrant the #1 ranking, with one Slam title at the Australian Open, two Masters 1000 at Canada and Miami, and ATP 500 titles at Beijing, Vienna, and Rotterdam. He also reached the semifinals at Wimbledon and the final at the ATP Finals in Turin. At a time in men’s tennis where the biggest titles are being shared among several players, Sinner’s current live point tally of 9525 points is enough to lead the tour by over 1000 points as he has overall been just a bit more consistent than everyone else.
Out of the last nine Masters 1000 events, only Sinner and Djokovic have won 2, with the remaining five shared between Hubert Hurkacz, Carlos Alcaraz, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Andrey Rublev, and Alexander Zverev. At the Slams, Djokovic, Alcaraz and Sinner won one each, with Alcaraz and Sinner still in contention (and possibly on collision course in the semifinals) for a second. The ATP Finals were won by Novak Djokovic, giving him the most big titles over the last 12 months. However, at 37 years old, Djokovic has been playing a reduced schedule and losing early in some tournaments, which has made him lose his #1 ranking.
Looking Forward
Going forward, Sinner is almost assured to keep his #1 ranking at least until Canada, but as far as keeping it until the end of the year his chances will be highly influenced by what happens in the coming days. If Sinner wins Roland Garros or even reaches the final, his chances will skyrocket. However, if Alcaraz beats him in the semis and goes on to win the final, he will close in considerably. As things stand now, Sinner and Alcaraz look set to contend for #1 in the near future: Alcaraz got there in 2022 and now Sinner has finally matched him. We will see if and how Alcaraz will be able to respond, perhaps on Friday already if Alcaraz makes it past Tsitsipas to set that mouthwatering semifinal clash with the newly crowned world #1.
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
