ATP Rankings: Rafael Nadal conquers throne ahead of Novak Djokovic
For the first time in a year, Rafael Nadal is world no. 1 again, opening the 197th week on the ATP throne in his eighth stint at the top of the men's game. Nadal was forced to withdraw before the semi-final clash in Paris against Denis Shapovalov but still did enough to pass Novak who lost points from the ATP Finals last year to become world no. 2 for at least two weeks. After claiming the title in Paris, Novak is not that far behind Rafa in the ATP Race and the final battle is set for London, with two giants fighting for that year-end no. 1 spot. Roger Federer decided to skip Paris but that didn't hurt his ranking position, with Daniil Medvedev losing in the opening match to Jeremy Chardy after six straight finals played, staying fourth and hoping to fight for the third place with Roger on his London debut.
After winning the title in Vienna last week, Dominic Thiem lost in the third round in Paris to Grigor Dimitrov, remaining 1000 points ahead of Stefanos Tsitsipas who lost the quarter-final encounter to Novak Djokovic. The reigning ATP Finals champion Alexander fell to the seventh spot with his points from London being erased, looking to find the form again and compete for the big title and 1500 points as he did a year ago. Last year's Paris champion Karen Khachanov is one of the biggest loser in the top-80, failing to defend the crown and dropping out from the top-15, allowing many players to pass him and improve their ranking. Matteo Berrettini and Roberto Bautista Agut gained one spot while Gael Monfils claimed three places to hit the top-10 for the first time since February 2017. Paris finalist Denis Shapovalov is in the top-15 for the first time, passing 13 rivals on the list for the best possible end of a regular-season ahead of the Davis Cup Finals.
Grigor Dimitrov is back inside the top-20 for the first time since the opening week of the season, advancing into the semi-final in Paris for another big result in the closing stages of the season that almost saw him dropping out from the top-100. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is back inside the top-30 for the first time since February 2018, setting a perfect ground for 2020 when he should be a contender for the place in the top-20. Marin Cilic has barely stayed in the top-40 while Kevin Anderson leaves the top-90 for the first time since July 2010, sidelined with an injury and working on a comeback for the new season!
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2Cc4vBe
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