'This is nonsense': Roger Federer embroiled in latest tennis furore
Roger Federer will drop out of the World Top 10 for the first time since 2017 and is set to drop even further as he missed the ATP Finals event, but fans are baffled over the ATP's latest changes.
The 20-time grand slam champion announced he would most likely take the rest of season off after his Wimbledon campaign to nurse another injury.
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Federer provided fans with a telling update in September and admitted the "worst" is behind him but a return date to tennis is still not clear.
However, the Swiss maestro has greatly benefited from the 'ranking points freeze' during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Federer is currently ranked World No.9, but is set to drop out of the Top 10 later this week for the first time since January 2017.
ATP announce rankings change
However, this week, the ATP announced they would be announcing a further change to their rankings freeze system.
Any player that competed in a tournament with a ranking drop off date after 9 August 2021 will maintain points regardless whether the next edition of the tournament falls within 52 weeks.
While this doesn't affect Federer (with Indian Wells expected to be a tournament benefiting from this), fans called out the ATP for continuing their freeze on ranking points.
This freeze has allowed Federer to remain in the World Top 10, for now, despite not winning a tournament since 2019 and only taking part in a select few competitions.
Fans were quick to point fingers at the ATP for further tweaks to the rankings, which has caused uproar over the last year.
However, others pointed out the latest changes don't affect Federer directly.
Federer hasn’t won anything since 2019 and is no. 9. Thiem‘s last title goes back more than a year and he‘s no. 8. Shapovalov has only won 1 ATP 250 title in his entire career (2019) and is no. 13. Auger-Aliassime has never won any ATP titles in his entire career and is no. 11.👌🏼
— Cyrus (@Cytendo) October 5, 2021
It’s not fair to some of the younger players tbh. They deserve to be higher. I love Federer, but seriously how is he still in the top 10
— Vansh! (@vanshv2k) October 5, 2021
I'll agree on Federer and Thiem, but FAA's ranking is exactly the same as in the race and Shapovalov's ranking is only two spots higher compared to the race. The points don't revolve only around the titles.
— jotto (@jottod_) October 5, 2021
For those that don't understand, basically all that changes is that Sofia and Nur-Sultan points from last year won't be gone yet but will still be counting for a few more weeks until it's been a year after the 2020 edition.
This rule has nothing to do with Federer😉— br-tv (@br_tvtrash) October 5, 2021
Are you surprised though. Money hungry sport like tennis. Federer draws fans. They are gonna milk him till his dying breath
— Wyatt (@WyattCondon) October 5, 2021
Having Federer in the Top 10 is insane.
— Justin Hester (@J_Hest23) October 5, 2021
This has nothing to do with Federer and his ranking. His points from 2019 earned on this part of the season are dropping as usual.
This has to do with the tournaments that were in in different weeks in 2020 and 2021.
That's it. 👍 https://t.co/jTXZcAQI37— val.eria 🦁 (@valdeff) October 5, 2021
The latest rankings tweak won't necessarily help Federer, but are the same type of changes that has helped many tennis players maintain their rankings without playing much.
Federer will most likely drop to World No.18 after dropping 500 points at the Basel Open and a further 400 points after missing the ATP Finals series.
This will be his lowest ranking since 2001.
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