Novak Djokovic set to regain No.1 ranking after Daniil Medvedev’s early exit at Indian Wells

Novak Djokovic set to regain No.1 ranking after Daniil Medvedev’s early exit at Indian Wells

Novak Djokovic and Daniil Medvedev

After missing the majority of the 2022 season so far, Novak Djokovic lost his No.1 ranking to Daniil Medvedev after losing his quarterfinal match at the Dubai Tennis Championships. Medvedev became the first man in about two decades other than the Big 4 of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray to clinch the No.1 ranking.

But due to his early exit at Indian Wells this week, Medvedev will lose the No.1 ranking to Djokovic. The Russian lost his third-round match to 26th seed Gael Monfils in three sets 4-6,6-3,6-1. As a result, he won’t gain many points this week and instead drop points from an ATP 250 event he won last week. Starting next week, Djokovic will become the new World No.1 with 8465 points. He will have a small buffer of 55 points.

Given the small margin at the top, the ranking may keep fluctuating throughout the year. Medvedev could once again be back at the top with a good outing at Miami next week while Djokovic could do the same at the Monte Carlo Masters. The key to the rankings would be the clay season as Medvedev is likely to struggle on it while Djokovic has lots of points o defend.

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Daniil Medvedev optimistic despite being losing the No.1 ranking

Daniil Medvedev
Daniil Medvedev

After losing to Monfils, Medvedev spoke about losing the No.1 ranking. He had an optimistic point of view about the whole thing and said that he feels it’s better to touch the No.1 ranking rather than being No.2 for so long.

“You never know how your career is gonna turn. Is it better to be No. 1 for one week in your life or never touch it? I think it’s still better to touch it. To have this achievement in your career is still a good thing,” Medvedev said.

Up next, Medvedev will head to Miami as the top seed. He will definitely fancy his chances there given the faster nature of the surface as compared to Indian Wells. He will have a good chance to grab a bag full of points before the clay season begins. Medvedev needs to make it to the semifinals at Miami to return at the top.

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Also read: THROWBACK: Nick Kyrgios and Casper Ruud’s heated history ahead of meeting at Indian Wells