Andy Murray has his sights set on the world number one ranking after a stellar 2016.
After a year which included winning Wimbledon and an Olympic gold medal, both for the second time, the 29-year-old could reach take the number one spot – held by Novak Djokovic since July 2014 – as early as November 7 if results go his way.
Here’s how…
Win in Vienna (Oct 24-30)
Murray cut the gap on Djokovic to 2,415 ranking points – a deficit that was almost 9,000 in April – with victory in Shanghai this month. The Scot won the Vienna tournament in 2014 but, because he did not play last year, he is not defending any points. Therefore, if he wins the indoor event in Austria he would add 500 points to his tally. Djokovic is not playing this week, as was the case last year, so his points tally would remain the same.
How it would stand if Murray wins in Vienna…
Djokovic: 12,900
Murray: 10,985
Win in Paris and hope Djokovic does not reach the final (Oct 30-Nov 6)
The regular tour comes to an end with the final Masters event in Paris next week, where Djokovic is the reigning champion. That means he is defending 1,000 points after he beat Murray in last year’s final, a run that earned the Scot 600 points. So, if Murray were to enjoy another impressive week in the French capital and lift the trophy, he could gain an additional extra 400 points. Should Djokovic only reach the semi-finals, he would drop 640 points.
How it would stand if Murray wins in Paris and Djokovic reaches the semi-final…
Djokovic: 12,260
Murray: 11,385
Sit back and let the rankings system do its thing
Even after winning in Paris and Djokovic not reaching the final, Murray would still be behind the Serb in terms of points ahead of the ATP World Tour Finals in London (Nov 13-20). However, an anomaly in the rankings system would see Murray take Djokovic’s crown as world number one on November 7, as all points won at last year’s World Tour Finals come off before this year’s event. As Djokovic was the champion, beating Roger Federer in the final at the O2 Arena, it means he drops a whopping 1,300 points. Murray, who has consistently struggled at the tournament, won only won match so drops just 200 points.
How it would stand after last season’s World Tour Finals points were taken off…
Murray: 11,185
Djokovic: 10,960
