A deep sense of distress, shock and sadness has been felt across the entire tennis community following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in the past week. Our thoughts are with the people of Ukraine, and we commend the many tennis players who have spoken out and taken action against this unacceptable act of aggression. We echo their calls for the violence to end and peace to return.

The safety of the tennis community is our most immediate collective priority. The focus of the WTA and ATP in particular in recent days has been on contacting current and former players, and other members of the tennis community from Ukraine and neighbouring countries, to check on their safety and offer any assistance.

The international governing bodies of tennis stand united in our condemnation of Russia’s actions and, as a result, are in agreement with the following decisions and actions:

• The WTA and ATP Boards have made the decision to suspend the WTA / ATP combined event, scheduled this October in Moscow.

• The ITF Board has made the decision to suspend the Russian Tennis Federation and Belarus Tennis Federation membership and to withdraw their entries from all ITF international team competition until further notice. This action follows the cancellation of all ITF tournaments in Russia and Belarus indefinitely.

• At this time, players from Russia and Belarus will continue to be allowed to compete in international tennis events on Tour and at the Grand Slams. However, they will not compete under the name or flag of Russia or Belarus until further notice.

When Carlos Alcaraz sealed victory and fell to his knees on the Rio de Janeiro clay, the tennis world felt the ground shake.

The 18-year-old has started 2022 on fire and his recent title run at the Rio Open presented by Claro win made him the youngest winner of an ATP 500 event. The victory also moved Alcaraz into the Top 20 of the ATP Rankings for the first time, a feat he has achieved at a younger age than Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, to name but a few.

The tremors of his Rio victory caused waves outside tennis, too. The Spanish sensation features on the front cover of this month’s Men’s Health Spain, and you can read an excerpt from the interview below:

Much has been said in recent weeks about the physical transformation of Carlos Alcaraz, but his maturity has gone much further. At 18 years old, the tennis player from El Palmar (Murcia) has won his first ATP 500 tournament and jumped into the Top 20 after winning the final in Rio de Janeiro and showing that his tennis is much more than muscle and youth.

“For me, tennis is purely mental,” says the tennis player in the exclusive interview he has granted to Men’s Health Spain. “In the end, you are alone there on the court, and it is you and only you who has to know how to overcome and find solutions.” Alcaraz has become the youngest ‘cover’ in the 20-year history of the magazine in Spain, one more milestone in his daring precocity.

Nadal’s shadow is long but Alcaraz avoids comparisons: “I don’t feel like anyone’s successor. I want to be known as Carlos Alcaraz and not as Rafa Nadal’s successor. I want my name to be known.”

Match by match, there is no place or person on the planet that has not set eyes on him. The New York Times defined him as “the great sensation of sport” and “a true prodigy”. For John McEnroe, he is “a player who is going to win a lot of Majors.”

“I have always kept in mind that the first thing is to be a person, and then an athlete,” says Alcaraz, who is always very grateful to the work of his coach, former tennis player Juan Carlos Ferrero. “It is a motto that helps me keep a cool head and my feet on the ground no matter what happens.”

You can read the full story in Spanish from Men’s Health Spain here.

No. 1 Daniil Medvedev, +1 (Career High)
The 26-year-old has soared to the top of the tennis mountain for the first time in his career, becoming the 27th player to reach No. 1 in the ATP Rankings. Medvedev, who advanced to the semi-finals at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC last week, is the first player outside the ‘Big Four’ of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray to hold the top spot in 18 years, three weeks and six days, since Andy Roddick on 1 February 2004. Standing at 6’ 6”, the 13-time tour-level titlist is the tallest World No. 1 in the history of the ATP Rankings.

View Latest ATP Rankings

No. 4 Rafael Nadal, +1
The Spaniard has risen one place after he maintained his perfect start to the season in Acapulco. The 35-year-old defeated Cameron Norrie in the final at the ATP 500 event to capture his third tour-level trophy of the year. Nadal, who has now earned 91 tour-level crowns, is 15-0 on the season. Read Acapulco Final Report & Watch Highlights.

No. 6 Andrey Rublev, +1
The 24-year-old has climbed one spot after he continued his dream month at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, clinching the title at the ATP 500 tournament. Rublev, who lifted the trophy in Marseille earlier in February, rallied past Jiri Vesely in the championship match. Read Dubai Final Report & Watch Highlights.

No. 50 Pedro Martinez, +22 (Career High)
Following his breakthrough run to his maiden tour-level title at the Chile Dove Men+Care Open last week, the Spaniard has jumped into the Top 50 for the first time. Martinez showed his fighting qualities throughout the week in Santiago, prevailing in the deciding set three times en route to the crown. Read Santiago Final & Watch Highlights.

No. 74 Jiri Vesely, +49
The Czech stunned former World No. 1 Djokovic in Dubai as he advanced to the championship match as a qualifier at the hard-court tournament. The 28-year-old arrived in Dubai holding a 1-5 record on the season, but found his best level to earn standout wins against Marin Cilic, Roberto Bautista Agut and Denis Shapovalov as well as Djokovic. Vesely’s victory over the Serbian resulted in Medvedev being crowned the new World No. 1.

Other Notable Top 100 Movers
No. 10 Hubert Hurkacz, +1
No. 19 Carlos Alcaraz, +1 (Career High)
No. 30 Alex de Minaur, +2
No. 56 Miomir Kecmanovic, +7
No. 62 Sebastian Baez, +16 (Career High)
No. 86 Ricardas Berankis, +13
No. 98 Alejandro Tabilo, +15 (Career High)