The last time the tennis world saw Jannik Sinner in action was during preparation for the Qatar Open in Doha. Then, news broke of his resolution agreement that resulted in a three-month ban.
Sinner left the practice court in Doha and has already served almost half of his ban. The three-time Grand Slam champion missed the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells but will still grow his lead in the ATP Rankings.
That is partly due to his early exit last year, which means he has fewer rankings points to defend. Also, it helps that Alexander Zverev lost early in the tournament, and Carlos Alcaraz failed to repeat as the champion.
Moreover, Zverev and Alcaraz have failed to make up much ground over the past month. Zverev has admittedly not played well since losing to Sinner in the Australian Open. Alcaraz won the Rotterdam 500 but lost earlier than expected in Doha and Indian Wells.
Sinner had a 3,695-point lead over Zverev and a 4,320-point lead over when he began his suspension. However, Zverev will lose 190 points, and Alcaraz lose 600 points.
After Indian Wells, Sinner’s lead as the World No. 1 will increase over his opponents. The Italian superstar will sit at 11,330, Zverev at 7,945, and Alcaraz at 6,910.
The silver lining for Zverev and Alcaraz is they can make up ground in the second half of the Sunshine Double. Similar to Indian Wells, the Miami Open is an ATP 1000 event.
Sinner won the Miami Open last year, which means he will lose 1000 points. Still, Sinner will maintain a significant lead in the ATP Rankings.
Sinner will return to action for the ATP Masters 1000 Rome in his home country on May 7. Tennis fans can follow Sports Illustrated’s Serve on SI for all the most important news from the sport.