MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 28: Daniil Medvedev of Russia celebrates after winning his Men's Singles semi-final match against Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece during day 12 of the 2022 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 28, 2022 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
ATP Rankings update: Daniil Medvedev is the new World No. 1 in men’s tennis
Daniil Medvedev became World No. 1 after Novak Djokovic lost in the quarter-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships. However, Medvedev himself lost the semi-final of the Mexican Open to Rafael Nadal. But a loss for the Serbian earlier meant Medvedev’s loss didn’t stop him from becoming No. 1.
Rafael Nadal and Stefanos Tsitsipas have exchanged places with Nadal becoming the new No. 4 and Tsitsipas dropped down to the 5th spot. Germany’s Alexander Zverev remained in the 3rd spot. The new entrant in the Top 10 is Polish player Hubert Hurkacz. Hurkacz gained one place to break into the top 10. Earlier though, the Polish star lost to the new no. 6 Andrey Rublev in the semi-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Medvedev is the first man outside the Big Four (Djokovic, Nadal, Federer and Murray) to be crowned No. 1 since 2004. The sheer dominance by these 4 players over the years is unparalleled to any era. Djokovic was No. 1 was for a record 361 cumulative weeks. His chance to return to the top is in jeopardy due to his vaccination status.
The Serbian is already missing tournaments including Grand Slams which have a huge effect on the ranking system. Medvedev leads 3rd-placed Alexander Zverev by almost 1000 points and could occupy the top spot for a considerable amount of time now. Does it mean Medvedev has marked the beginning of a new era in Tennis?
The current top 10 shows a shift from the old guard. Nadal and Djokovic are the only players aged above 30. Barring Medvedev who is 26 years of age, the other players in the top 10 are either 25 or below. It is safe to say the tennis world is now ready for the new crop of players. We can expect the likes of Medvedev, Zverev, Tsitsipas, Berrettini, Rublev, Felix, Hurkacz and Alcaraz to dominate men’s tennis for a long time now. Maybe it is finally time for the old guard to hand over the baton to the young guns.
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