Brutal Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios fallout from US Open
Novak Djokovic and Nick Kyrgios remain two of the hardest hit Top 20 players of Wimbledon's ban on handing out ranking points after the updated rankings were released after the US Open.
The 21-time grand slam winner missed the US Open due to his ineligibility to enter the country because of his unvaccinated status.
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Djokovic admitted earlier this year, after the Australian open debacle, that he wouldn't get vaccinated in order to play tennis.
And his stance has seen him fall down the rankings fort the first time in years.
Djokovic fell down to World No.7 in the rankings, but has a chance to remain steady if things go his way.
The 35-year-old has signalled his intention to play for Team Europe in the Laver Cup after he was picked in the squad.
However, the tournament does not carry ranking points.
But Djokovic won't have to defend any points from the US Open until the Paris Masters later this year.
This could see him sneak into the ATP Race to Turin if he opts to play ATP events.
Djokovic is the reigning Paris Masters champion and will be forced to defend 1,000 points, which could be the difference in him reaching the year-end Race to Turin battle.
Nick Kyrgios enters Top 20 after US Open
The Aussie star has enjoyed a remarkable second half to the season having reached the Wimbledon final, claim the Citi Open title and reach the quarter-final of the US Open.
But, Kyrgios' Wimbledon points didn't count and he only just gained a seeding for the US Open a week before the tournament.
Yet the Australian has reached World No.20 in a reflection of his form this year.
This still falls short of his career-high ranking of World No.13, which he would have most likely bettered if it wasn't for Wimbledon.
Kyrgios has been vocal about the poor reflection of the ATP rankings, due to the Wimbledon debacle, and two victories over former World No.1 Daniil Medvedev on hard courts this season only cemented his claim.
“The ranking system doesn’t reward skill and form, to be honest, over a certain period of time,” he said before his loss at the US Open.
“It definitely rewards consistency, more so. I’ve played 12 events. Some of the people in front of me have played 32.
“Obviously, it’s almost impossible for me to be higher ranked unless I’m going deep like this in tournaments. The rankings for me doesn’t really matter.
“I feel like tonight was another message that rankings don’t matter."
Kyrgios' immediate tennis future in 2022 remains unclear.
After the brutal loss to Karen Khachanov in the quarter-final, the Australian was dejected and wanted to return home to see his family.
"Honestly, I don't even really care about any other tournament. Now having success at a grand slam, it's just like no other tournament really matters," Kyrgios said before leaving New York.
"That's all people remember at a grand slam, whether you win or you lose. I think pretty much every other tournament during the year is a waste of time, really."
Having cut his 2021 campaign short after the Laver Cup exhibition event last September, Kyrgios has zero ranking points to defend between now and the end of the year.
Although the Australian hasn't signalled when he would return to the ATP Tour in 2022
Any points he accrues will be gold and go a long way towards securing an all-important top-16 seeding for the Australian Open, a tournament that dearly matters to Kyrgios.
A top-16 seeding at Melbourne Park would guarantee Kyrgios avoids running into a higher-ranked rival until at least the second week.
with AAP
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