Alexander Zverev’s long wait for No. 1 ends after dominant season

LONDON (AP) — Alexander Zverev finally rose to the No. 1 spot in the men's tennis rankings on Monday, a reward for a dominant season during which he became a two-time Grand Slam champion.

Zverev beat Flavio Cobolli for the French Open title in June in his fourth major final, months before the 29-year-old German defeated Ben Shelton to lift the US Open trophy at Flushing Meadows in September.

Those triumphs finally put to rest the underachiever tag pinned on his back for years, when he was widely regarded as “the greatest player never to win a Grand Slam.” Zverev, who is guaranteed to finish the season as No. 1, also reached the final at Wimbledon this year, falling to Jannik Sinner , and the Australian Open semifinals.

He became the 30th male player to reach No. 1, and the oldest in more than 50 years to top the rankings for the first time. Zverev only trails John Newcombe, who was 30 years old when he reached the top spot in 1974.

“I had to wait,” said Zverev, who reached the summit of the rankings more than four years after becoming No. 2. “But sometimes you’ve got to wait for the best things in life. I’m super happy, super thrilled.”

In addition to his two Grand Slam titles, Zverev has won many other important trophies. The list includes two ATP Finals titles, an Olympic singles gold medal and seven Masters 1000 trophies. He holds a 65-17 record this year.

Zverev is just the second German man to become No. 1 after Boris Becker.

Sinner, who had been holding the top spot since April 13, dropped to second, ahead of Carlos Alcaraz . Sinner announced the end of his season three weeks ago because of inflammation in his right knee.

Zverev, who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 4, is set to compete in his first tournament as No. 1 at the Paris Masters this week.

Among other notable moves in the rankings, 20-year-old Spaniard Rafael Jodar climbed to No. 10 less than a year after making this Tour debut at the Australian Open. Jodar set a record for the fastest rise from debut to the Top 10 — 287 days — breaking Gustavo Kuerten’s mark of 490 days.

Zverev’s ascension to the top ranking comes after two of his ex-girlfriends accused him of physical abuse .

One accusation from 2020 was eventually resolved following an agreement between German prosecutors, lawyers for Zverev and his former partner. The ATP Tour investigated another case and in January 2023 concluded there was insufficient evidence.

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