Zverev secures world number one rise with Vienna victory

Alexander Zverev will take over from Jannik Sinner as men's world number one on Monday after beating Tallon Griekspoor to reach the Vienna quarter-finals. BBC Sport reported that the German's 6-4 7-5 victory at the Erste Bank Open secured the change at the first possible date, 2 November. He had already clinched the year-end number one ranking.

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The milestone makes Zverev the second German man to lead the ATP rankings, following Boris Becker in 1991. At 29, he will also be the second-oldest player to reach number one for the first time. His season includes French Open and US Open titles, with 64 victories from 80 matches underpinning his climb to the top.

His starting position in January underlines how much the standings have changed. Carlos Alcaraz began 2026 with 12,050 ranking points, ahead of Sinner on 11,500, while third-placed Zverev had 5,110. Alcaraz and Sinner had shared all eight Grand Slam singles titles across 2024 and 2025, but both have missed significant portions of this season because of injuries, according to the BBC.

Zverev did not meet either rival during his two successful major campaigns, and his US Open run brought no top-10 opponent until he defeated Ben Shelton in the final. He acknowledged that he might not be the best player if both Alcaraz and Sinner were fully healthy and performing at their highest level. Nevertheless, Alcaraz's Shanghai defeat on 12 October had already ensured Zverev would finish the year first.

In Vienna, his next opponent is British number one Arthur Fery, setting up another meeting after their Wimbledon semi-final. Fery defeated Lorenzo Musetti 6-4 5-7 6-4, recovering from 4-2 down in the deciding set. The BBC described the result against the 26th-ranked Italian as Fery's highest-ranked victory on the regular ATP Tour.

Elsewhere in the tournament, Daniil Medvedev survived a match point against Cameron Norrie before winning 4-6 6-3 7-6 (7-1). Norrie had served for victory at 5-3 in the final set. Alcaraz also advanced, beating Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-1 7-6 (13-11), as Zverev's ranking breakthrough headlined the day's results.