Alcaraz aware as Sinner closes in ATP rankings
The Spaniard recently suffered an injury that forced him to withdraw from Rio Open
Carlos Alcaraz has his eyes set on Jannik Sinner as the Italian is closing in on his No.2 position in the ATP rankings. The Spaniard is still aiming to clinch the top position after losing it to Novak Djokovic in September 2023.
Aiming for the first position, Alcaraz is aware that he can even end up losing his second position if he doesn’t start playing at his highest level.
Sinner has been in an unstoppable form in 2024. The Italian is yet to lose a match in the year and also clinched his first-ever Grand Slam by beating Daniil Medvedev in the Australian Open final. He then went on to lift the trophy in Rotterdam, reaching his career-high of No. 3 in the world.
Alcaraz currently sits in second position with 9,105 points and Sinner is third with 8,270. While this looks like a big difference of 835 points, the Spaniard is aware that for a player of the Italian’s level, it stands for nothing.
Following the Spaniard’s injury in Rio, it is now confirmed that neither of them will play an official tournament until Indian Wells which will begin in March.
Alcaraz will defend his title in Indian Wells and his position from Sinner — who reached the semi-final last year.
“I notice his breath. I think he still got 1,000 points, but for Jannik that's nothing,” Alcaraz told MARCA, discussing Sinner’s current spot in the rankings.
“I have to be on top of my game as much as I can to try not to let him catch up with me and regain No. 1.”
Remember, for now, Novak Djokovic is guaranteed to sit at the top of the rankings at least until April as he will play Indian Wells and Miami, and would only gain points. The Serb didn’t play in either tournament last year.
