Jannik Sinner has an opportunity to reach the world no. 3 spot at the 2024 Rotterdam Open after the withdrawal of Daniil Medvedev.
The tennis world has only just recovered from the Australian Open final played between Sinner and Medvedev. Incredibly, Sinner came back from two sets down to claim a maiden Grand Slam title in Melbourne.
That triumph has given the Italian a new level of worldwide recognition as a result. For instance, Sinner is now one of the five most-followed active men's players on social media, having not been in the Top 5 before the Australian Open.
Sinner and Medvedev also received a significant boost in the ATP points race. The 22-year-old moved closer to Medvedev, who still holds the world No. 3 spot, but the Russian's points for being the runner-up kept Sinner at bay.
However, that could all change after next week's ATP 500 event in Rotterdam, with Sinner having a mathematical chance of entering the Top 3 in the ATP rankings for the first time.
Medvedev elected to withdraw from the Rotterdam Open, citing fatigue and a right foot injury as the reasons. He won the title in Rotterdam last year by beating Sinner in three sets.
This means Medvedev is guaranteed to lose 500 points at the end of the event this year. That will see him drop from his current total of 8765 points back down to 8265 points.
Sinner currently has 8070 points to his name. His runner-up finish last year in Rotterdam means the Australian Open champion would have lost 300 points had he not played at the tournament.
Yet, if Sinner wins the event, he would win 500 points, but the 300 points he is defending from last year means the Italian would gain 200 points overall in that scenario.
That would leave Sinner on 8270 points. If Sinner wins the title in Rotterdam, he will go ahead of Medvedev in the rankings by just five points. That surely creates extra motivation for Sinner in his first tournament since the Australian Open.
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