Tennis world in uproar over Novak Djokovic news after Wimbledon
Tennis fans are up in arms after Novak Djokovic officially dropped from World No.3 to No.7 one day after winning the Wimbledon title.
Djokovic came from a set down to beat Nick Kyrgios in Sunday's final at the All England Club, clinching his seventh Wimbledon crown and 21st grand slam overall.
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But controversy has erupted in the aftermath of Djokovic's triumph after the Serbian star dropped four places in the rankings on Monday.
With the ATP's latest rankings update, Djokovic has fallen from No.3 to No.7 despite lifting the Challenge Cup for a fourth-consecutive time at Wimbledon.
The farcical situation came about because the ATP and WTA tours decided to strip Wimbledon of rankings points in retaliation to the All England Club's ban on Russian and Belarusian players.
Wimbledon officials decided to take a stand against Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, barring all players from Russia and Belarus from competing at the grass-court grand slam.
The ATP and WTA tours then stripped Wimbledon of rankings points, but decided not to put the rankings on hold.
That means Djokovic has now lost the 2000 points he earned from winning Wimbledon in 2021, resulting in his drop in the overall rankings.
Tennis writer Stuart Fraser tweeted on Saturday: "Novak Djokovic could win Wimbledon on Sunday and drop from No.3 to No.7 in the world rankings. Madness.
“The ATP really have shafted themselves with this ludicrous decision. Nick Kyrgios would be a great (and arguably a much-needed) addition to the ATP Finals field but he’ll remain at No.37 in the Race to Turin after this fortnight."
Djokovic wins Wimbledon, moves down four spots in the rankings.
Tennis continues to tennis https://t.co/6BRazbbGjW— Arash Madani (@ArashMadani) July 11, 2022
One of the weirdest Wimbledon ends with the weirdest ATP rankings ever
Novak Djokovic, after winning his 4th consecutive singles title, drops four spots pic.twitter.com/pBOd6Ms6a9— Christopher Clarey 🇺🇸 🇫🇷 🇪🇸 (@christophclarey) July 11, 2022
Imagine designing a ranking system so flawed that you’re trying to argue that there are SIX better players in the world than Novak Djokovic! Shame on you ATP! #atp #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/ah28qcasEf
— Ballers & Bitcoin (@FI_Bargains) July 11, 2022
Judging from the new #ATP ranking, you would think that Medvedev is a multi slam winner, while Djokovic a beginner who just made his debut in the Top 10. #ridiculous https://t.co/9sS1g807lt
— Sᗩᖇᗩ🦋 (@saradjokofan1) July 11, 2022
This is ludicrous, because this year's Wimbledon didn't have points at least let the guys keep last year's points. I am a Rafa fan however it doesn't make sense why Djokovic who literally defended his title has to drop points. Crazy if you ask me, but then again who am I?
— Sandz 🇿🇦🇧🇼 (@SantanaGP) July 11, 2022
What a joke. Man wins Wimbledon and drops four spots.
— 10sFan59 (@ksr10sfan) July 11, 2022
Nick Kyrgios falls victim to rankings debacle
Equally as ridiculous is Nick Kyrgios falling from 40th to No.45 despite reaching his maiden grand slam final in London.
The rankings fiasco threatens to cost Kyrgios an all-important seeding for the year's final major at the US Open, starting in New York on August 29.
Ordinarily, Kyrgios would have soared to No.15 in the world on the back of his Wimbledon run, placing him in position to claim a top-16 seeding at Flushing Meadows.
That would have ensured the 27-year-old couldn't possibly run into a higher-ranked rival until at least the fourth round of the US Open.
Instead, Kyrgios - unless he climbs the rankings in the next month when he planned a well-earned break - will be at the mercy of the draw.
Fortunately for Kyrgios and the rest of the field, but unfortunately for Djokovic, the Serbian star won't be playing the US Open after choosing not to get vaccinated against Covid-19.
Had Djokovic been playing, Kyrgios could conceivably have faced Djokovic in the first round in New York as a result of the rankings debacle.
Even without Djokovic in the draw, Kyrgios could still strike any number of big-name rivals in the opening round if he doesn't improve his position.
And due to players' rankings points not dropping off their records for a year, the decision not to award points at Wimbledon will continue to have ramifications for 12 months.
But Djokovic and Kyrgios aren't the only stars to suffer from the farce.
Elena Rybakina's first grand slam title did her no good in the WTA rankings, with the Kazakh remaining at World No.23.
Ons Jabeur, who lost to Rybakina in Saturday's final, went from No.2 to No.5 despite recording her best showing at a major.
French Open champion Iga Swiatek, whose 37-match winning streak ended in Wimbledon's third round, remains at No.1.
Russian outcast Daniil Medvedev has held on to top spot in the men's rankings, even while not competing at Wimbledon.
And Roger Federer has dropped out of the ATP rankings for the first time in a quarter-century.
Federer had appeared in the singles rankings every week since he made his debut at age 16 in September of 1997 (tied for 803rd), and held the record for most time at No.1 until Djokovic broke it.
Federer was 97th before play began at Wimbledon, but now has zero points because the rankings are based on a player's results over the previous 52 weeks - and he has not competed since reaching the Wimbledon fourth round a year ago.
with AAP
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