Tennis
What happened to Novak Djokovic? Why tennis star will lose No. 1 ranking after French Open withdraw | Sporting News
Novak Djokovic’s reign at the top is no more.
The Serbian star tumbled down the ATP rankings (by his own standards) after seeing his French Open run come to a premature end. Djokovic’s exit from the competition wasn’t any fault of his own — he was felled by a torn meniscus, one that prompted him to withdraw and spelled an end to his hopes of defending his title at Roland-Garros.
Nevertheless, the rankings are a cruel and wicked sorceress. And soon, another European star will be taking his place atop the totem pole.
MORE: Why Novak Djokovic withdrew from the 2024 French Open
With that, here’s a look at why Djokovic won’t be sitting in the No. 1 spot come June 10 regardless of any results.
Why Novak Djokovic isn’t the No. 1 player in the world
Djokovic’s spell atop tennis’ mountaintop was a prosperous one, adorned with hardware, memorable moments and plenty of wins. Nevertheless, all good things must come to an end. His did on the crimson clay of Paris’ grandest tennis venue.
That’s not where Djokovic’s descent down the ladder started, however.
MORE: French Open 2024 scores, bracket for men’s and women’s tennis singles
The ATP rankings are graded on a 52-week scale. Players receive points for their 19 best finishes in ATP-certified events over the course of a calendar year. Of ATP-certified events, Grand Slams are weighted the most. Winners of a Grand Slam major (US Open, Wimbledon, French Open, Australian Open) receive 2000 points, runner-ups receive 1200, semifinalists receive 720 points and so on an so forth up to qualifiers, who receive 25 points for their efforts.
| Grand Slam stage | Points |
|---|---|
| Winner | 2000 points |
| Runner-up | 1200 points |
| Semi-finals | 720 points |
| Quarter-finals | 360 points |
| Round of 16 | 180 points |
| Round of 32 | 90 points |
| Round of 64 | 45 points |
| Round of 128 | 10 points |
| Qualifiers | 25 points |
At present, Djokovic’s point total sits at 9,960, 1,190 more than No. 2 ranked Jannik Sinner. With Djokovic withdrawing ahead of his quarter-final matchup with Casper Ruud, Djokovic will see the 2,000-point cushion he gained from vanquishing his foes vanish, replaced by a 360-point total instead. The upcoming ATP rankings will deduct 1,640 points from his current total, leaving him with “just” 8,280 points. Sinner secured a spot in the semifinals on Tuesday, meaning he will gain at least 720 ATP points from his pilgrimage to Paris’ 16th arrondissement. He garnered just 45 last time around, meaning his point total is certain to rise. And because of the gap between Sinner and third-place Carlos Alcaraz, Sinner is guaranteed to be atop the standings when the new rankings are released Monday, January 10.
It’s unclear quite where Joker will rank after the dust is settled at Roland-Garros this week. Alcaraz could also leapfrog the Serb if he were to capture gold on clay.
Nevertheless, Djokovic’s No. 1 world ranking belongs to someone else, at least for the time being. And with his status for Wimbledon up in the air, it could be hard for him to return to the throne he has sat on for what will be a record 429 weeks when the French Open ends.
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