DAnil Medvdev, 26, officially became the third Russian on Monday and the twenty-seventh player in history to reach number one in world tennis, by snatching supremacy from Serbian Novak Djokovic, which held the top spot for an unprecedented 361 weeks.
Although lose in the semifinals of Acapulco against the Spanish Rafa Nadal -winner of the tournament who earns a place in the list to place fourth-, Medvdev unseated Djokovic by adding 8,615 points compared to 8,465 for the Serb.
Following in the footsteps of his compatriots Yevgeny Kafelnikov, who spent six weeks at the top of the list, and Marat Safin (nine), his Russian predecessors at the top of the ranking, Medvedev is also the tallest number one player in world tennis, at 198 centimeters tall, and the sixth-oldest to access that position for the first time.
“Of course, I am happy with number one. It was my goal since my young youth and especially in recent times. I have received messages from many people and from other players and I want to thank everyone for their great support”, commented the new world leader on the ATP page.
Of course, I’m happy with number one. It was my goal since my young youth and especially in recent times
The last time a tennis player debuted the world number one was five years ago, when the British Andy Murray did it on November 7, 2016. Medvedev, who broke into the world top-100 in November 2016 when he was 20 years old, he secured the lead last Thursday when Djokovic lost in the Dubai quarter-final against the Czech Jiry Vesely.
His history includes a Grand Slam tournament (the US Open 2021) and a Masters 1000 (Toronto 2021), among the 13 titles he has won on the ATP circuit.
Medvdev and Djokovic precede German Alexander Zverev on the world list already Rafael Nadal, who snatches fourth place from the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas. Within the top 20 are three other Spaniards: Roberto Bautista (15), Pablo Carreo (16) and Carlos Alcaraz (19).
Paula Badosa drops to sixth place in the WTA ranking
The Spanish Paula Badosa fell two places within the top 10 of the WTA, going from fourth to sixth position, with 4721 points, after falling in the round of 16 against the American Cori Gauff, in Doha, while Garbie Muguruza maintains the ninth place.
The lead is held by Australian Ashleigh Barty, while the Polish Barbora Krejcikova snatches second place in the WTA world ranking from the Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, who is in third place.
