Zverev Will Cap Strange ATP Season as No.1

Alexander Zverev will become the No. 1 player in the world for the first time after Jannik Sinner announced that he will not play again in 2026 (though there is a small chance that Carlos Alcaraz will add to his calendar and go on a mad run that pushes him above Zverev in the unlikeliest of scenarios, so it isn’t official yet).

Zverev’s rise to the top caps a remarkable season for the German, and a weird one for men’s tennis. Zverev came of age on the Grand Slam stage by winning his first two major titles, at Roland Garros and the US Open, in a season that was defined by catastrophic injuries as much as it was by his rise.

It had been a long time coming for Zverev, but would he have been able to do it without the unfortunate circumstances that characterized the men’s game this year?

A question that will never be answered.

Zverev’s breakthrough came during a season in which Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz encountered some of the greatest difficulties of their careers. Also missing for long stretches were Jack Draper and Arthur Fils. Taylor Fritz played under a constant injury cloud. Novak Djokovic, all 39 years of him, battled a yet-to-be-remedied illness that sapped him of strength.

Zverev, meanwhile, remained healthy and thrived. Not an easy task at all, given the ever increasing physicality of the tour, and the packed ATP schedule that left many players seemingly gasping for air.

ATP No.1-Ranked Players, All-Time

Player
Ilie Nastase
John Newcombe
Jimmy Connors
Bjorn Borg
John McEnroe
Ivan Lendl
Mats Wilander
Stefan Edberg
Boris Becker
Jim Courier
Pete Sampras
Andre Agassi
Thomas Muster
Marcelo Rios
Carlos Moya
Yevgeny Kafelnikov
Patrick Rafter
Marat Safin
Gustavo Kuerten
Lleyton Hewitt
Juan Carlos Ferrero
Andy Roddick
Roger Federer
Rafael Nadal
Novak Djokovic
Andy Murray
Daniil Medvedev
Carlos Alcaraz
Jannik Sinner

In 2026, struggle was real on the men’s tour, and so was the menacing game of Zverev. 

The German’s high-octane tennis cut through the rest of the tour like a knife through butter as he made his opportunistic dash to Grand Slam glory – a potential finally fully realized, during a season that undeniably lacked star power on the men’s side.

Alcaraz, Sinner Shelved

Alcaraz was limited by a wrist injury that forced him to miss two majors and left him undercooked at the US Open, while Sinner was attacked on multiple injury fronts. The Italian’s strange physical collapse in the heat at Roland Garros came a few months before a knee injury put the kibosh on his hard-court season.

The five-time major champion would eventually shut down his season without making it to the last major, the US Open.

Credit Zverev – he took full advantage of the situation and finally delivered his long-awaited major title in Paris, winning the title on his 41st Grand Slam main-draw appearance. Then he repeated the feat in New York to make it two majors out of three – damn good. 

But it’s impossible to overlook Zverev’s record against the cream of the crop of men’s tennis. Zverev went 0-5 against Sinner and 0-1 against Alcaraz this season, leaving him with a combined career record of 10-19 against the pair.

The 29-year-old is just 2-8 against Top-10 opposition in 2026 so far.

The numbers don’t lie. Zverev’s No. 1, but he’s far from being the best player in tennis. And that’s what has made 2026 such a bizarre year for the men. Last year at this time it was full steam ahead with Sincaraz. This year the ship ran aground just as Zverev set sail. 

None of that changes the bottom line: Zverev won the majors that were there to be won. Now, for the first time in his career, he is headed to No. 1, and he deserves it. A quick glance at the company he’ll join points to the enormity of his achievement.

ATP Year-End No.1’s