In 2024, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz took the lead of the ATP tour with great force. The two brightest talents of the new era of mens tennis shone this year, sharing equally four Grand Slam titles and also winning four Masters 1000 in total. The Italian ace has maintained an impressive pace for most of the season, despite being hit by a very sensitive doping case that is still open due to WADAs appeal. The worlds number 1 has won the Australian Open and the US Open, as well as the Masters 1000 in Miami, Cincinnati and Shanghai.
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The only six defeats suffered by Jannik from January to date attest to the greatness of his year. The 23-year-old from Sesto Pusteria is already sure to end 2024 at the top of the ATP ranking, having created a monstrous gap compared to all his rivals. Although he didnt have the same consistency as Sinner, Alcaraz can be proud of his season. The 21-year-old from Murcia became the youngest ever to win the French Open and the Wimbledon Championships in the same year. As if that were not enough, the Spanish ace won the Indian Wells Masters 1000 for the second year in a row and the silver medal at the Paris Olympics.
Behind Jannik and Carlitos, there is a unclear hierarchy at the moment. Novak Djokovic - though he won the gold medal at the Olympics this summer - has fallen off the previous years and hasnt even won an ATP title in 2024. The Serbian legend has also greatly reduced the tournaments it participates in and hasnt won a single Major title for the first time since 2017 (and for the second time since 2011).
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Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev are always competitive and close to the top positions of the ATP ranking, but they lack something to reach the level of the worlds two best players and to triumph in the Majors. Stefanos Tsitsipas, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Casper Ruud, Taylor Fritz and Andrey Rublev are definitely more detached. Its true that the Greek and Russian won a Masters 1000 this year, in Monte Carlo and Madrid respectively, but they never seemed competitive enough to win a Grand Slam tournament.
Fritz reached the final at the 2024 US Open playing a great tennis and taking advantage of the premature eliminations of Alcaraz and Djokovic, but was annihilated by Sinner in the last act. There are many who argue that the Top 10 at this time in history has a significantly lower level than 10 or 15 years ago.
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A weak Top 10?
In a long interview with LEquipe before the start of the Paris-Bercy Masters 1000, former World No.8 Marc Rosset expressed a very strong point of view on this topic: "Back when Roger Federer dominated the ranking, the top 10 rarely moved. Guys like Nadal, Djokovic, Murray, Cilic or Stan Wawrinka were well established. These guys performed regularly in the Grand Slams. A guy in eighth place, if he fulfilled his contract by reaching the quarters, would stay in the top 10. When I look at the current rankings, beyond the top 5, they're not consistent enough in Grand Slams to make a lasting impression.
Taylor Fritz is there for his US Open final. Andrey Rublev plays a lot, but struggles in the Grand Slam tournaments. Casper Ruud is having an average season. And behind him... Tsitsipas, he shines somewhere and gets a second round at Wimbledon, then makes the final elsewhere. It's too disjointed. Shelton is up and down all season. Tiafoe is the same. Musetti can win a tournament but miss out so often. Auger-Aliassime, we're not even talking about him, I wonder how he's still here. These guys can perform, but also lose to second-tier players, you don't understand why..."
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Auger-Aliassime ends his season
Meanwhile, it has been reported that Auger-Aliassime will not participate in the Masters 1000 in Paris-Bercy. The Canadian player - who has not excelled this year, except for the Paris Olympics - announced that his season ended due to an injury. I tried to give myself every last opportunity to be fit to play in Paris but unfortunately it wasnt meant to be this year he wrote on his social media.
After experiencing some pain in my back during Basel, I did some testing and attempts to practice before concluding that I wouldnt be ready to compete in Paris at the level Id hope for. That being said, its a bittersweet ending to the season and Im going to do everything in my power to recoup mentally and physically for a strong start in 2025. We keep going. Thank you as always for all of your kind words and support Felix added.
