ATP Ranking Update: Alcaraz and Sinner unmovable at the top; Shelton becomes American No. 1 as Fonseca slips

The 2026 ATP Tour season has officially begun with the Australian swing, featuring several warm-up tournaments ahead of the Australian Open. The rankings saw minor updates this Monday after the opening week, with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner maintaining their commanding grip on the top two spots. Both continue to hold a massive lead over world No. 3 Alexander Zverev, with more than double the points of the German.

The biggest movement inside the top tier came from Taylor Fritz, who dropped three positions to world No. 9 — his lowest ranking in the past 17 months. As a result, several players moved up one spot: Alex de Minaur (No. 6), Lorenzo Musetti (No. 7), and Ben Shelton (No. 8) all moved ahead of Fritz, although the point gaps remain very tight.

With this shift, Shelton once again becomes the American No. 1, reclaiming the position he first achieved in April 2024.

While a single ranking position may not seem significant, the No. 8 spot is particularly valuable heading into the Australian Open. Being seeded inside the top eight allows Shelton to avoid higher-ranked opponents until at least the quarter-finals, steering clear of potential clashes with Alcaraz, Sinner, or Novak Djokovic until that stage. On the other hand, Fritz now faces a potentially tougher draw, as he could meet a top-ranked opponent as early as the round of 16.

Further down the rankings, there was a change at the top of Czech tennis, as 2025 Miami Open champion Jakub Menšík became the new Czech No. 1. He moved up one position to No. 18, overtaking Jiří Lehečka, who slipped to No. 19.

One of the more notable drops came from Brazilian teenager João Fonseca, who fell five places in the rankings. Fonseca had been the defending champion at the Canberra Challenger, but after breaking into the elite level, he did not enter the tournament this year and lost 125 points. Players such as Learner Tien and Cameron Norrie were among those who benefited from the young star’s slip.

Other significant changes include Reilly Opelka dropping eight places to No. 60, Alexandre Müller falling nine spots to No. 52, and Grigor Dimitrov continuing his slide in the rankings, losing three positions to sit at No. 47.