Jannik Sinner becomes first Italian to reach top two of ATP rankings since 1973

Young gun claims Miami Open title, eyes Monte Carlo Crown.

Jannik Sinner clinched the Miami Open trophy in his third attempt, displaying sublime tennis against Grigor Dimitrov. He bested the Bulgarian with a score of 6-3, 6-1 in just 73 minutes. This victory marks Sinner’s third title of the year, following his wins at Melbourne and Rotterdam.

Notably, Sinner ascended to the World No. 2 position on the PIF ATP Rankings, surpassing Carlos Alcaraz. He is also the first Italian to achieve this ranking since the ATP Rankings were established in 1973. Although Sinner narrowly missed claiming the No. 2 spot at the BNP Paribas Open earlier this month, eventual champion Alcaraz thwarted his bid. By securing the Miami Open title, Sinner joins Roger Federer (2017) as the only men to win both in Melbourne and Florida within a calendar year.

As the new season unfolds, Sinner and the Spaniard will intensify their rivalry on the clay courts of Europe. The Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters is set to begin in less than a week at Monaco.

1 – Jannik Sinner will become the first Italian player to become part of the top-2 in the world since the ATP rankings were first published in 1973. Rapid. #MiamiOpen | @MiamiOpen @atptour pic.twitter.com/YIuEL8wizW

— OptaAce (@OptaAce) March 31, 2024

The entry list for Monte Carlo includes Rafael Nadal and World No. 1 Novak Djokovic. Nadal boasts an impressive record, having triumphed here eleven times—eight between 2005 and 2018, and three more from 2016 to 2018. Djokovic, who recently completed 418 weeks as No. 1, seeks to break his title drought in 2024. A deep run at Monte-Carlo could prevent Sinner from overtaking the top spot during the summer. The Madrid Masters in late April presents a potential opportunity for this ranking reversal.

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Meanwhile, Djokovic, having parted ways with coach Goran Ivanisevic, faced an unexpected defeat to lucky loser Luca Nardi in the third round at Indian Wells. He opted to skip Miami, focusing instead on the upcoming clay court season.

Sinner solidifies his position in the race to Turin with 3900 points, comfortably ahead of Medvedev’s 2550 points. Currently second in the live ATP Rankings with 8710 points, Sinner trails Novak Djokovic by 1000 points. A victory at Monte Carlo would make him the first Italian since Fabio Fognini in 2019 to achieve this feat.

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