ATP Race Update: Carlos Alcaraz extends lead as Jannik Sinner secures his spot in Turin

After the Cincinnati Open Masters 1000, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner were once again the point leaders of the week, and the ATP Race to Turin did not show significant changes from recent weeks. The world No. 1's retirement in the middle of the final, while he was down 0-5, resulted in Carlos Alcaraz lifting his eighth Masters 1000 title.

Alcaraz remains in first place in the race to the ATP Finals—already qualified for several weeks—and now has Jannik Sinner confirmed as the second qualifier. While the Italian's presence seemed evident for a while, he mathematically secured his spot in Turin after reaching the Cincinnati final.

However, things are getting complicated for the Italian if he wants to stay at the top of the ranking toward the end of the season, as Alcaraz has increased his lead over his most immediate pursuer. The Spaniard has 8,540 points against Sinner's 6,640 points—still a very large distance from the rest of the contenders.

The ATP Race exclusively measures the points earned in 2025 and will determine the eight qualifiers for the ATP Finals, in addition to the ranking of the rest of the players at the end of the year. With Alcaraz and Sinner already qualified, the dispute for the other six spots for the finals is still open, although several players already have one foot in the tournament.

Since Sinner's return after a three-month doping ban, the four times he was in the same draw as Alcaraz, they ended up facing each other in the final: the Rome Open and Roland Garros went to the Spaniard, and then Wimbledon to Sinner. This past week, they faced each other in the Cincinnati final, where Alcaraz ended up winning the title after his rival's retirement after just five games, amid physical complications and an overwhelming heat on the American afternoon. It was a bitter end to the tournament, and we'll have to wait for the start of the US Open to see if they meet again.

Alcaraz took 1,000 points for winning the Cincinnati title, and Sinner took 650. With this, the gap widens in favor of the Spaniard (8,540 points), surpassing his Italian rival (6,650 points), with the difference that Sinner missed up to three months of the Tour, including four Masters 1000 tournaments during that time.

In any case, the presence of the two best players in the world at the ATP Finals in November is already guaranteed, and now there are only six spots left to be contested among the rest of the players.

Alexander Zverev commands the rest of the list, and even though he has fallen a step behind Sinner and Alcaraz in the last year, he has managed to be the one who follows them most closely. He showed it again in Cincinnati, where he entered as the third seed and reached the semifinals, only to fall to Alcaraz in straight sets. The German has 4,080 points—still distant from the Qualification Cut of 5,860—but he has the best chances of qualifying. In previous years, 4,000 points have been enough for qualifiers to the Finals, and only a disaster could keep him out of Turin.

In 4th place is the American Ben Shelton (3,610), who can draw good conclusions from the last tournaments he has played. He won the title at the Canadian Open and then reached the quarterfinals in Cincinnati, falling to Zverev. The 22-year-old star has a 12-2 record since returning to the hard courts at the DC Open and will arrive at the US Open with great ambitions.

Even without playing too many tournaments, 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic always remains at the top, reaching the semifinals in the three Grand Slams played this year, in addition to the final at the Miami Open and a title at the ATP 250 Geneva Open. Nole has shown consistency in the biggest tournaments, which makes him deserving of the 5th position in the Race. Nole has qualified for the finals an incredible 17 times since 2007—only missing out on qualification in 2017 after missing half the season due to injury.

Further back are Taylor Fritz (3,065), who was surprised in the 4th round by the tournament's surprise, Terence Atmane, and Jack Draper (2,940)—who was absent in Toronto and Cincinnati due to injury (just like Djokovic).

The 8th place—and potentially the last qualifying spot for the finals—is closely contested by Alex De Minaur (2,745, 8th) and Lorenzo Musetti (2,670, 9th). The Italian has paid a high price for not competing much and lacking rhythm in recent months, losing positions in the Race, where he had reached the top-5. Both De Minaur and Musetti had the chance to regain positions this week in Cincinnati, but both fell in their debut, and what they can do at the US Open will be key for a potential qualification to the Finals.