How Novak Djokovic can reclaim World No.1 ranking from Daniil Medvedev in March?
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Novak Djokovic
After spending an astonishing 361 weeks at the top of the standings, Novak Djokovic‘s reign ended with a shock loss to Jiri Vesely at the Dubai Tennis Championships. The Serbian will cede his ranking to Daniil Medvedev who will be crowned as the new World No.1 on Monday.
Djokovic was playing his first tournament of the year in Dubai. After missing the entire Australian hardcourt swing, Djokovic dropped valuable points, as he was the defending champion at the Australian Open. His ranking drop was inevitable after Medvedev’s stellar start to the season. Djokovic entered the Dubai Tennis Championships with his No.1 ranking on the line, even a title win would not have guaranteed his position at the top of the standings.
But Djokovic’s defense ended in the quarter-finals itself after he was upset by 123rd ranked Czech qualifier, Jiri Vesely. The Serbian was completely outplayed by Vesely, who notched up his second win over Djokovic in as many matches. With his defeat in Dubai, Medvedev was guaranteed to be the first player other than the Big 4 to occupy the summit of the standings since 2004. But in a fresh twist, looks like Medvedev’s reign might last only 3 weeks after he lost to Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals in Acapulco.
Novak Djokovic has the chance to reclaim No.1 ranking in March
Medvedev was knocked out in the semi-finals of the Mexican Open after he faced a straight-set loss to Rafael Nadal. This was the Russian’s second straight loss to Nadal following his defeat in the finals Australian Open in the hands of the Spaniard. With this Medvedev dropped valuable ranking points which might have put him well ahead of Djokovic.
Medvedev’s reign as the World No.1 might be short-lived with his semi-final loss. In the updated ranking which will be released on Monday, Medvedev holds 8,615 ranking points while Djokovic will have 8,465. He will top the standings but he will only be 150 points ahead of Djokovic. The Russian is set to drop 250 points in March from Marseille which he won last year and his points will stand at 8,215 on 14th March.
But with Indian Wells taking place between March 8-20, ATP will release the updated rankings on 21st March. According to ATP rules, rankings won’t be updated in midst of Masters tournaments. Djokovic is most likely to miss the tournament, which means Medvedev’s fate is in his own hands. A quarter-final finish will be enough for the Russian to maintain his position at the top of the standings. An exit before the quarters will result in Djokovic reclaiming the No.1 ranking.
Also read: THIS Roger Federer record will remain untouched as Novak Djokovic loses World No. 1 ranking
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T Rushitha
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