World ranking: Daniil Medvedev would overtake Novak Djokovic with tournament victory in Acapulco
Daniil Medvedev could replaceNovak Djokovic at the top of the world rankings on February 28th. We present the six scenarios for this.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit:
Feb 15, 2022, 10:31 am
One thing is certain: Should Daniil Medvedev lift the title in Acapuclo, Mexico on February 27, the Russian will find himself number one in the world rankings a day later. Even a tournament victory in Dubai would not be enough for the current industry leader Novak Djokovic to continue to leave the 26-year-old behind.
Medvedev would be only the third Russian, after Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Marat Safin, to be officially listed as the best player in the world. Notable: The last player outside of the Big Four (Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal) to hold the number one spot was Andy Roddick on February 1, 2004.
the initial situation
On February 21, Djokovic will be in the world rankings at 8875 points, Medvedev at 8425. This is due to the fact that both players will lose the points collected from the Australian summer in 2020.
With Djokovic also set to lose the points from his Dubai 2020 triumph on February 28, even with another tournament win in the United Arab Emirates he would be stuck at 8875 points. Medvedev, on the other hand, has nothing to defend this week and would overtake the Serb with a tournament win in Acapulco regardless of his performance in Dubai.
The other scenarios
According to the ATP , however, there are five other scenarios in which Medvedev would take the lead in the ranking even without a tournament win in Acpaulco.
- Medvedev reaches the final in Acapulco and Djokovic doesn't win the title in Dubai.
- Medvedev reaches the semifinals in Acapulco and Djokovic misses the final in Dubai.
- Medvedev reaches the quarterfinals in Acapulco and Djokovic misses the semifinals in Dubai.
- Medvedev reaches the second round in Acapulco and Djokovic misses the semifinals in Dubai.
- Medvedev loses in the first round in Acapulco and Djokovic misses the quarterfinals in Dubai.
The competition
A look at the field of participants in Acapulco shows that the path to tournament victory for Medvedev should not be easy. Among others, Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Rafael Nadal and Matteo Berrettini announced their coming.
Djokovic will compete in Dubai with Andrey Rublev, Felix Auger-Aliassime and Jannik Sinner.