Jannik Sinner spoke recently about taking “small steps” in order to reach his dream of becoming world No 1 and he can edge further forward in the coming weeks as the world No 3 ranking is waving at him.
On the back of winning the Australian Open, Sinner – currently at a career-high No 4 – closed the gap to third-placed Daniil Medvedev in the ATP Rankings with world No 1 Novak Djokovic and world No 2 Carlos Alcaraz further ahead.
Top Five In ATP Rankings
1. Novak Djokovic 9,855
2. Carlos Alcaraz 9,255
3. Daniil Medvedev 8,765
4. Jannik Sinner 8,310
Sinner, though, has dropped 240 points in the Live Rankings after he opted not to defend his Open Sud De France title last week (the tournament was held a week later in 2023).
That effectively puts Sinner on 8,070 points – 695 adrift of Medvedev in third place.
However, there are likely to be a lot more twists and turns in the rankings in the coming weeks, especially after Medvedev withdrew from next week’s Rotterdam Open as he is still recovering from his Australian Open effort after he spent more than 24 hours on court en route to finishing runner-up.
“Unfortunately I have to pull out of Rotterdam. After an incredibly tough and long run in Australia my body (and especially my right foot) is not recovered enough yet to play come and defend my title,” the 2021 US Open champion said.
Medvedev defeated Sinner in last year’s Rotterdam Open final and it means he will drop 500 points while Sinner will drop 300 points while Alcaraz will drop 250 points although those points will only drop on February 18 (in correspondence to the event’s dates last year).
Projected Points After Rotterdam Drop
1. Novak Djokovic 9,855
2. Carlos Alcaraz 9,255
3. Daniil Medvedev 8,265
4. Jannik Sinner 7,770
That puts Sinner 495 points behind Medvedev in the battle for third place and victory, which would result in him picking up 500 points, will see him usurp the Russian and move closer to his big goal of becoming world No 1.
Of course, there is a caveat as the Rotterdam Open takes place a week earlier this year so points won from this year’s tournament will be added before the previous year’s points drop off a week later.
Following his Australian Open victory, Sinner talked about the importance of taking small steps.
“I’m taking it one step at a time,” the Italian said. “I know I still need to improve physically and in terms of my fitness, which can help my tennis. I can do everything better. A lot of important steps have been taken but there’s still work to be done.
“There are many differences between the top 5 in the world, the top three and then No 1. For now, I am No 4. The first objective is to move forward in small steps. In the meantime, we are approaching position No 3.”
And even if the No 3 ranking doesn’t change hands after Rotterdam, there will be more opportunities in the coming weeks as Medvedev has 250 points to defend at the Qatar Open and another 500 points to defend at the Dubai Tennis Championships.