Tennis officials’ controversial decision not to award rankings for Wimbledon has ended in farce.
The ATP and WTA – the governing bodies of men’s and women’s tennis – had good intentions when they stripped Wimbledon of its rankings status in protest to the All England Club’s banning of Russian and Belarusian players from competing because of Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine.
But the stand has backfired spectacularly, with Novak Djokovic dropping from third to No.7 in the world a day after winning an incredible seventh Wimbledon crown.
Equally as ridiculous is Australian Nick Kyrgios falling from 40th to No.45 in the world after reaching his maiden grand slam final in London.
The rankings fiasco threatens to cost Kyrgios an all-important seeding for the year’s final major, the US Open starting in New York on August 29.
Ordinarily, Kyrgios would have soared to No.15 in the world for his Wimbledon run, placing him in position to claim a top-16 seeding at Flushing Meadows.
That would have ensured the 27-year-old couldn’t possibly run into a higher-ranked rival until at least the fourth round of the US Open.
Instead, Kyrgios – unless he climbs the rankings in the next month when he planned a well-earned break – will be at the mercy of the draw.
Fortunately for Kyrgios and the rest of the field, but unfortunately for Djokovic, the Serbian superstar won’t be playing the US Open after choosing not to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
Had Djokovic been playing, Kyrgios could conceivably have faced Djokovic in the first round in New York as a result of the rankings debacle.
Even without Djokovic in the draw, Kyrgios could still strike any number of big-name rivals in the opening round if he doesn’t improve his position.
And due to players’ rankings points not dropping off their records for a year, the decision not to award points at Wimbledon will continue to have ramifications for 12 months.
Djokovic and Kyrgios aren’t the only stars to suffer.
Elena Rybakina’s first grand slam title did her no good in the WTA rankings, with the Kazakh remained at world No.23.
The woman she beat in Saturday’s final, Tunisian Ons Jabeur, went from No.2 to No.5 despite recording her best showing at a major.
French Open champion Iga Swiatek, whose 37-match winning streak ended in Wimbledon’s third round, remains at No.1.
Russian Wimbledon outcast Daniil Medvedev has held on to top spot in the men’s rankings even while not competing at the grass-court slam.
By Darren Walton in London
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