Novak Djokovic may have lost in the Australian Open semifinal for the first time in his career, but it's not all doom and gloom.
Despite some implicating that Djokovic's time as the most dominant men's champion is over, they are likely to be proven wrong because the Serb has done pretty much that for most of his career.
Djokovic, who clocked a 410th week as the World No. 1 after the Australian Open, has 100 more weeks than the next ATP player on the list of most weeks at No. 1, Roger Federer (310). The 36-year-old's short-term schedule came to light this week.
While Djokovic will not play any ATP events in February, including one of his favorite tournaments - the Dubai Championships - he is set to return to the United States at the start of March, as indicated on his own website. He will play the Indian Wells Masters for the first time since 2019.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion is in the driver's seat to remain World No. 1 after his next tournament. Djokovic only drops 180 points this month for his no-show in Dubai but doesn't defend any points during the Sunshine Double.
In the meantime, his closest rivals, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, and newly-crowned Australian Open Jannik Sinner, have a ton of points to defend. Medvedev, for instance, defends the most points of the three (2,850 points) over the next two months.
The Russian has four title defenses between now and the start of April. For his part, Alcaraz defends 1,910 points with titles in Buenos Aires and Indian Wells to protect. At the same time, Sinner has 1,510 points to defend.
So, in hindsight, Djokovic will virtually keep the World No. 1 ranking beyond the reach of his rivals during the Sunshine Double. It remains to be seen whether he will play in Miami, but even if he doesn't, he only has 315 points to defend in the lead-up to Roland Garros.
0 Comments