The new ATP circuit ranking system will give some players the chance to benefit more than others after deciding that the positions in the classification will be determined by the 18 best results achieved between March 2019 and December 2020.
This new system is a double-edged sword for tennis players like Rafa Nadal. The Balearic Islands managed to secure 5,360 points in this classification obtained as champion of the US Open, Roland Garros and Masters 1,000 of Rome last year (2000 at the US Open, 2000 at Roland Garros and 1000 in Rome) in addition to the 360 as a semifinalist in Madrid. However, in the schedule confirmed to date by ATP Nadal could only add 2,140, with a maximum of 500 points in Washington, 1,000 in Cincinnati and 640 if he wins in Madrid.
Yes, Novak Djokovic would benefit from this measure. The Serbian will maintain 2,860 points as champion of the Mutua Madrid Open (1000), 720 as Roland Garros semifinalist, 600 as finalist in Rome and 540 added between Cincinnati and Roland Garros. However, the Serbian could further expand his advantage with Nadal at the top of the ranking, since Djokovic could add 4,640 points in confirmed tournaments in the event that he is champion in Washington (500), Cincinnati (640 more than last year), US Open, where he could add 1820 more points if he wins in New York, Rome (400) and Roland Garros (1280). In fact, this measure could help Novak Djokovic approach the absolute record of weeks as number 1 that Roger Federer maintains at 310 (Djokovic is third with 282, four less than Sampras, after the ranking was frozen on March 22 ).
Another of the great beneficiaries of this measure is Roger Federer. The Swiss will have no options to add more points in 2020 since he said goodbye to the season after the knee operations he underwent. However, Federer does manage to retain the 1,530 points he added between Roland Garros, US Open, Rome, Madrid and Cincinnati in 2019. However, if Dominic Thiem improves his results compared to last year in these tournaments, the Austrian distances himself from the Swiss in the ranking … and could even threaten Rafa Nadal's second position.