Jannik Sinner successfully chases Rafael Nadal's first-ever World No. 1 reign as ATP dominance continues

Jannik Sinner has been racking up the weeks at the top-ranking position of men's tennis lately. The Italian is currently serving a three-month doping suspension, but he will likely rejoice after learning about a rather impressive milestone he achieved this week.

Sinner began his steep upward climb in the ATP rankings at this time last year, as he won the Australian Open and the Miami Open in scintillating fashion. The then-22-year-old eventually became the World No. 1 for the first time in his career on June 10. He hasn't relinquished the top ranking since then, currently holding a tally of 9,930 points.

This week, Jannik Sinner completed 46 weeks at the top of the men's singles rankings, which is indicative of his dominance over the rest of the field. By virtue of the above feat, the Italian has now matched Rafael Nadal's first-ever reign as the World No. 1 in 2008.

Nadal was just 21 years old when he first leapfrogged to No. 1 in the rankings after winning gold in men's singles at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The Spaniard's rise to the top was punctuated by his five-set title match win at Wimbledon that year against five-time defending champion Roger Federer, who had previously been the numero-uno player on the ATP Tour for a record-breaking 237 weeks.

Sinner, on his part, has beaten the likes of Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, and Alexander Zverev in his big title victories. The Italian most recently won his third Major title at the 2025 Australian Open in January.

---

Jannik Sinner's doping ban to end next month, might play at Italian Open

Jannik Sinner will be back on ATP Tour next month | Image Source: Getty

Following his successful title defense in Melbourne, Jannik Sinner accepted a three-month doping ban from WADA for having tested positive for the banned substance clostebol in March 2024. The World No. 1 had initially escaped time away from tennis last year after the International Tennis Integrity Association (ITIA) found him to be at "no fault nor negligence" with respect to his failed doping tests.

The 23-year-old's suspension, which began on February 9, will end on May 4 - just in time for the Italian Open. The three-time Major winner will potentially be eyeing participation at the third and final ATP Masters 1000 tournament on clay, which will lead up to the French Open later in May. Going by videos circulating on social media, he has already resumed on-court practice and will be the player to beat for the rest of the 2025 season.