Djokovic out of Dubai, hands Daniil Medvedev world number one ranking
- Daniil Medvdev clinches world No.1 ranking
- Novak Djoovic lost the rankig after losing in Dubai to Jiri Vesely in his first match since last year
Novak Djokovic is set to lose his world No.1 ranking to Daniil Medvedev after his upset defeat to Jiri Vesely 6-4, 7-6 on Thursday night in Dubai.
Djokovic’s recovery was quickly halted, and he realized how difficult life would be for him as an unvaccinated athlete.
His No. 1 ranking was the first item to go after his upset defeat to Vesely on his first attempt to make a tennis comeback.
It is now mathematically certain that Medvedev will take over as world No.1 next week in a historic moment for men’s tennis.
It will be the first time since 2004 that someone other than Djokovic, Nadal, Federer, or Murray holds the prized position, putting an end to an extraordinary stretch of dominance.
The 34-year-old Serbian’s defeat in Dubai after a nearly three-month hiatus from the court is not a major setback for him.
Novak Djokovic. Photo/The Sports Review
The fact that he needs a lateral flow of matches in order to maintain his high standards serves as a reminder, however, that even he needs a correct flow of matches.
It could be troublesome because he doesn’t know which games will be available to him in his current unvaccinated status. This is despite Miami Open expressing interest in having him play in March.
With the Indian Wells, it remains a big puzzle on whether Djokovic will play or not.
“The more matches I play, the more comfortable I get. I need the match play. I’ll have to follow the situation, see how it goes. Wherever I get an opportunity to play, I will. I expected myself to play on a higher level, I can do better” Daily Mail reports.
Medvedev lost his bid to clinch the Australian Open 2022 title to Rafael Nadal who rebounded like a phoenix to rule the court.
However, his performance in the third-round match against the Czech Republic’s Vesely was well below that of the previous two rounds.
Djokovic was unable to take advantage of his opponent’s nervousness, even when serving at 5-4 in the second set.
At 3-4 in the tiebreak, when he appeared to be returning from a 0-3 disadvantage, it was clear that he was losing steam.
The best player in the world made an uncommon error by making a double fault to give the momentum back. It’s been a rough week for him, but the kind reaction he’s received from the stands has been a welcome relief.
Novak Djokovic visa remains cancelled. Photo/Tennis Australia Open
The difficulties Djokovic will have in recovering the world number one ranking is another effect of his limited playing time. However, as he has repeatedly stated, everything is ultimately up to him.
After scrawling “Ukraine” on the TV camera’s lens, he proceeded to do the typical signature of the camera.
The ATP Tour acted fast on Wednesday in cancelling a Challenger level event scheduled to take place in Moscow next week, despite the fact that there are relatively few tennis events in Russia — and the women’s tournament in St. Petersburg was completed earlier this month.
After the US Open, the WTA Tour has yet to finalise its post-US Open schedule, which includes the well-known Kremlin Cup in Moscow.
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