How Novak Djokovic can remain World No. 1 until Roland Garros

Novak Djokovic's dream of winning his first title of the 2022 season in front of his home fans was halted by Andrey Rublev in the final of the Serbia Open on Sunday.

Despite that, the Serb has held on to the top spot, mainly thanks to Daniil Medvedev remaining on the sidelines with no return date in sight. The Russian is currently recovering from a hernia surgery and has been ruled out of the Madrid Masters. It is not clear whether he will be back for the Rome Masters ahead of the French Open.

Djokovic thus began his 367th week as the top-ranked ATP player on Monday, and is guaranteed a 368th week as well. But from there on, things get a little tricky.

As things stand at the moment, the 34-year-old has 8400 ranking points to his name, while Medvedev has 8080. The Serb is defending 500 points in Madrid thanks to his title run in 2019. The Russian, meanwhile, has only 90 points to lose, after a third-round exit last year.

Once the points are subtracted, the World No. 1 ends up with 7900 points, while the reigning US Open champion will have 7990 points. With Daniil Medvedev not playing, however, Djokovic can retain the top spot by winning just one match.

As the top seed, the 20-time Grand Slam champion will receive a bye in the first round. A win in his opener will take him into the Round of 16, thereby assuring him 90 points. The duo will then be tied on 7990 points, but the ATP rules give the Serb the upper hand.

Excerpt from 2022 ATP rule book regarding points tie

According to the official rulebook, a tie will be broken by determining which player has the most points from "Big titles" - Grand Slams, Masters 1000s (except Monte-Carlo since it is not mandatory) and the Year-end Championship. In that category, Novak Djokovic has a comfortable lead -- 7900 points vs Medvedev's 7115.

At the Rome Masters, Novak Djokovic is defending 600 ranking points compared to Daniil Medvedev's 10

Novak Djokovic has to defend 600 points in Rome from reaching the final last year

Even if Daniil Medvedev doesn't compete at the Rome Masters, Novak Djokovic has a huge task at hand. The Russian is defending only 10 points in the event, having lost in the second round of the 2021 edition.

But the Serb progressed as far as the final last year, meaning that he has 600 points to defend in Rome. While Medvedev will have 7980 points post-Madrid, the World No. 1 will have 7300 points plus whatever he rakes in from his run in the Spanish capital.

To simplify things further, if the 20-time Grand Slam champion reaches only the third round (90 points) or quarterfinals (180 points) at the Madrid Masters, he will need to reach the final (600 points) in Rome to hold on to the top position.

If Djokovic reaches the semifinals in Madrid (360 points), he can stay No. 1 by reaching the semifinals in Rome too. Alternatively, a title at either of the two tournaments (1000 points) will be enough for the 34-year-old to hold off the reigning US Open champion until Roland Garros.