Jannik Sinner has flipped the No. 1 battle, now aims to pull away on clay | ATP Tour

PIF ATP Live Rankings Projection

Sinner has flipped the World No. 1 battle, now aims to pull away on clay

The Italian trailed Alcaraz by more than 3,000 points at the beginning of March

April 26, 2026

The battle for World No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings has drastically changed in the past two months, with Jannik Sinner currently holding the top spot and well placed to extend his advantage over Carlos Alcaraz.

On 2 March, Alcaraz held a sizable lead of 3,150 points on then-World No. 2 Sinner. The Spaniard began the season on a 16-match winning streak, including his triumph at the Australian Open, where he became the youngest man to complete the Career Grand Slam in the Open Era. Alcaraz then won the ATP 500 event in Doha and had a commanding cushion over Sinner.

But the 24-year-old Sinner has since flipped the script. The Italian is currently on an 18-match winning streak, having won the ATP Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells, Miami and Monte-Carlo. The top seed in Madrid, Sinner is not defending any points in the Spanish capital, providing him an opportunity to extend his lead.

Entering the third round in Madrid, Sinner leads Alcaraz by 440 points in the PIF ATP Live Rankings. Sinner will be seeking to pull away from his great rival Alcaraz throughout the clay-court swing.

The Italian is defending 650 finalist points in Rome, where he will aim to win his home country’s ATP Masters 1000 event for the first time.

Sinner will then head to Roland Garros, where he will be defending 1,300 points. In Paris, the 27-time tour-level titlist will seek to join Alcaraz, among others, in completing the Career Grand Slam. Last year, Sinner held three championship points at the clay-court major before Alcaraz stormed back to win a five-hour, 29-minute epic.

Alcaraz will drop 3,000 points throughout the rest of the clay season, meaning Sinner is guaranteed to extend his lead by 1,050 points without even stepping on court in Rome or Paris. The 22-year-old announced this week that he will miss Rome and Roland Garros due to a right wrist injury. In 2025, he won both of those events.

This week marks Sinner’s 68th career week as World No. 1, two clear of Alcaraz’s 66. Sinner has an opportunity this clay season to further solidify his hold on the top spot and add to that tally of weeks atop the tennis mountain.

Sinner has also built an early advantage in the battle to claim ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by PIF honours. He leads Alcaraz by 300 points in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin and could cause more separation between him and the Spaniard through this pivotal clay-court stretch.