Russia’s Daniil Medvedev to replace Novak Djokovic as world’s No. 1 Tennis Player

Russia’s Daniil Medvedev is guaranteed to become the world’s No. 1 tennis player when he rises to the top of the ATP rankings on February 28, 2022. Medvedev will be crowned at the helm after Novak Djokovic’s loss to Jiri Wesley in the quarterfinals of the Dubai Duty- Free Tennis Championships on 24 February 2022.

It will also be the first time that a player outside the ‘Big Four’ of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray will be named the world’s No. 1 tennis player among men. In 2004, Andy Roddick reached the top spot who was not in the ‘Big Four’. Novak Djokovic has spent a record 361 weeks at No. 1 in the ATP rankings.

Guess what this guy’s ranking is going to be next week@DaniilMedwed pic.twitter.com/b9ixKJnbTy

— ATP Tour (@atptour)
February 24, 2022

How will Daniil Medvedev become the world’s number 1 tennis player?

Following his quarterfinal victory in Acapulco on February 24, 2022, Russian player Daniil Medvedev is two wins away from starting his reign in supreme style on the back of a 14th Tour-level title.

Hours after his impending spot in the men’s game was confirmed, the Russian scored a 6-2, 6-3 win over Yoshihito Nishioka at the Mexican Open. According to Medvedev, playing a match is not easy when you get this news during the day. Little did he know that a Novak Djokovic defeat guaranteed him a top spot, until he started receiving congratulatory messages.

Who is Daniil Medvedev?

Daniil Medvedev of Russia is a professional tennis player who will be ranked as the World No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he will achieve on February 28, 2022.

Medvedev has won 13 ATP Tour singles titles, including the 2021 US Open and the 2020 ATP Finals. In the past, Medvedev had denied him a Grand Slam by defeating then world number Novak Djokovic in the final.

Daniil Medvedev was the runner-up at the 2019 US Open, 2021 Australian Open and 2022 Australian Open.

Novak Djokovic lost to qualifier Jiri Wesley

Qualifier Jiri Wesley in Dubai defeated top seed and five-time champion Novak Djokovic 6-4-7-6 to reach the semi-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships. Wesley will now take on Denis Shapovalov in one semi-final, and Audrey Rublev and Hubert Herkaz in the other.