Jannik Sinner withdrew from the Shanghai Masters on the day Alexander Zverev reached the quarter-finals in Beijing.
Still not fit to play, Sinner will miss the Shanghai Masters due to injury. The Italian’s withdrawal gives Zverev a major boost in his hunt for the world number one ranking.
After Zverev defeated Juncheng Shang to set up a China Open quarter-final clash with Novak Djokovic, he was asked for his thoughts on Sinner’s withdrawal and what it means for his chances of becoming world number one.
Alexander Zverev admits ‘it’s no secret’ that he is targeting world number one
“Yeah, I think it’s no secret that it’s a goal, for sure. Of course, I know what I’m playing for. I know I’m very, very motivated to play at the moment,” said Zverev during his post-match press conference.
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Zverev trails Sinner by 1,280 points in the ATP rankings. However, that gap could close to 880 points if Zverev wins the China Open. Then, he could take the world number one spot by winning the Shanghai Masters, while Sinner misses out due to injury.
Live ATP Rankings
| Rank | Player | Country | Points |
| 1 | Jannik Sinner | Italy | 11,000 |
| 2 | Alexander Zverev | Germany | 9,720 |
| 3 | Carlos Alcaraz | Spain | 5,160 |
| 4 | Ben Shelton | USA | 4,680 |
| 5 | Daniil Medvedev | Russia | 3,910 |
Even if Zverev doesn’t win the two tournaments in China, he is likely to finish 2026 as the year-end number one. He leads the race by 800 points and should extend his lead while Sinner remains sidelined. The Italian hasn’t played a match since Wimbledon, and after skipping another event, has left many wondering if he’ll play again before the end of the year.
Live ATP Race
| Rank | Player | Country | Points |
| 1 | Alexander Zverev | Germany | 8,750 |
| 2 | Jannik Sinner | Italy | 7,950 |
| 3 | Ben Shelton | USA | 4,430 |
| 4 | Carlos Alcaraz | Spain | 4,150 |
| 5 | Flavio Cobolli | Italy | 3,530 |
Zverev can’t get distracted thinking about the rankings, though, and must stay focused on the task at hand. When he returns to action in Beijing, the German will look to do something that has never been done before.
Alexander Zverev previews Beijing quarter-final against unbeaten Novak Djokovic
Djokovic has never lost a match at the China Open. The six-time champion is 31-0 in Beijing and has only dropped four sets. Zverev knows he can’t overlook Djokovic, even with the number-one ranking on his mind.
“Right now, this second, I’m thinking about Novak Djokovic tomorrow. I think, again, it’s one of the toughest challenges we can have in the sport to play him on a hard court. I have a tough challenge tomorrow, and that’s my focus,” said Zverev.
“It’s exciting for me, for sure. It’s definitely a court that he absolutely loves and enjoys playing on. No question about it. He won, what, 31 matches here in a row.
Novak Djokovic’s 31 wins at the China Open
| Year | Performance | Match wins |
| 2009 | Champion | 5 (Victor Hanescu, Viktor Troicki, Fernando Verdasco, Robin Soderling, Marin Cilic) |
| 2010 | Champion | 4 (Gong Maoxin, Gilles Simon, John Isner, David Ferrer) |
| 2012 | Champion | 5 (Michael Berrer, Carlos Berlocq, Jurgen Melzer, Florian Mayer, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga) |
| 2013 | Champion | 5 (Lukas Rosol, Fernando Verdasco, Sam Querrey, Richard Gasquet, Rafael Nadal) |
| 2014 | Champion | 5 (Guillermo Garcia-Lopez, Vasek Pospisil, Grigor Dimitrov, Andy Murray, Tomas Berdych) |
| 2015 | Champion | 5 (Simone Bolelli, Zhang Ze, John Isner, David Ferrer, Rafael Nadal) |
| 2026 | Quarter-final | 2 (Nuno Borges, Yunchaokete Bu) |
“Still, I think in best-of-three sets he’s going to be one of the toughest challenges you can have in this sport on a hard court. No question about it. He’s playing great. I look forward to this challenge. Yeah, look forward to tomorrow.”
Zverev and Djokovic will battle it out in the China Open quarter-finals on Sunday, October 4. The winner will play Daniil Medvedev or Francisco Cerundolo in the semis. Alex de Minaur, Andrey Rublev, Hubert Hurkacz, or Karen Khachanov will await them in the final.
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