 "Explained: How Jannik Sinner fortified his lead atop the ATP rankings despite not playing Indian Wells due to doping ban")
Jannik Sinner, the world’s top-ranked player, is currently serving a three-month ban that he had received for two failed doping tests last year. The Italian, as a result, had to watch his rivals battle it out at the Indian Wells Open – the tournament in which he had tested positive for banned anabolic agent Clostebol – on a television set instead of on the court.
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Sinner’s ban began on 9 February and will end on 4 May, three days before the Italian Open gets underway in Rome. And despite not competing at the Indian Wells Open this month, in which Briton Jack Draper defeated Norway’s Holger Rune 6-2, 6-2 to be crowned champion, Sinner managed to consolidate his lead at the top of the ATP rankings.
How Sinner improved his lead atop the ATP rankings despite doping ban
For starts Sinner had fewer ranking points to defend at Indian Wells due to his semi-final exit last year, with Carlos Alcaraz – the eventual champion – showing him the door with a 1-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory. The Spaniard, currently ranked third in the world, fail to defend his title this year, losing to Draper 1-6, 6-0, 4-6 in the semi-finals.
What also helped Sinner’s case was the fact that Alexander Zverev, ranked second in the world, failed to close the gap with him with a second-round defeat against Netherlands’ Tallon Griekspoor.
Sinner had already lost 400 ranking points from the Indian Wells last year due to his positive doping test, and did not lose any further ranking points due to his absence this month. Alcaraz, on the other hand, lost 600 ranking points.
Sinner currently sits at the top with 11,330 while Zverev and Alcaraz are third and fourth respectively with 7,945 and 6,910 points respectively.
Novak Djokovic, a 24-time Grand Slam champion who has experienced a sharp drop in form since last year, is back among the top five with 3,860 while Draper has halved his ranking to move to a career-best No 7 as a consequence of his victory on Sunday.
The southpaw gained 990 ranking points to move into the top 10 and currently has 3,800 points to his name.
Zverev and Alcaraz, however, will get the opportunity to close the gap with the Italian at the Miami Open, which is also an ATP 1000 event, later this month.
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