Italy’s
Jannik Sinner becomes the biggest beneficiary of the
ongoing
Indian Wells competition. The ATP 1000 event is now down to the final
stage, with the finalist already been confirmed. It will be a contest between
Denmark’s Holger Rune and Britain’s Jack Draper.
That is great news for the reigning world number one, that
is despite him currently spending time on the sidelines after agreeing
a three-month ban following two failed dope tests in March last year. The development will see the 23-year-old, who is regarded as the best player in the world, return to the court in May of this year, just days before the start of the Rome Masters.
With him being absent, there was a perfect opportunity for
his two closest rivals, Germany’s
Alexander Zverev and Spain’s
Carlos Alcaraz,
to close the gap and dethrone him before he returns to the court. However, that
has not been the case. The German tennis star was knocked out in the second
round after losing to Netherlands Tallon Griekspoor with a score of 4-6, 7-6,
7-6. On the other hand, Alcaraz’s journey in the competition ended at the
semifinal stage, where he lost to Draper with a score of 6-1, 0-6, 6-4.
With those results, Sinner’s position at the top is likely
to stay intact. Zverev has dropped 650 points after disappointing performances
in the recent past, meaning he will have to win more than 2,400
points out of the possible 3,500 points available before the start of the Rome
Masters. On the other hand, Alcaraz will now need to win 3,220 points from the
next four competitions, meaning that he will have to win three out of the next four
tournaments he will participate in and play in the final of every competition.
Those developments seem very unlikely, so there is every
likelihood that Sinner will return to the court as the world number one.