Medvedev Learns Road To World No. 2, Ending Big Four's Streak
When the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament draw came out Friday, Daniil Medvedev learned his path to becoming the No. 2 player in the FedEx ATP Rankings for the first time.
If the Russian reaches the final in Rotterdam, he will become the first player outside the Big Four — Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray — to hold a top two spot since Lleyton Hewitt was World No. 2 the week of 18 July 2005. Nadal passed the Aussie the following week and the quartet has not looked back since.
Medvedev will begin his run against Dusan Lajovic, and may face Felix Auger-Aliassime in the quarter-finals, prior to meeting Alexander Zverev or Roberto Bautista Agut in the semi-finals with World No. 2 on the line.
If Medvedev makes the championship match at this ATP 500, he will add 300 FedEx ATP Ranking points, which would replace the 90 points the 25-year-old earned in Vienna last year. The net gain of 210 points would propel the Russian ahead of Nadal, who currently leads him by 115 points.
FedEx ATP Rankings – 22 February 2021
| Player | Points |
| 1. Novak Djokovic | 12,030 |
| 2. Rafael Nadal | 9,850 |
| 3. Daniil Medvedev | 9,735 |
Medvedev has been playing the best tennis of his career. The World No. 3 has won 20 of his past 21 matches, with his only loss coming against nine-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic, the World No. 1, in the championship match at Melbourne Park. Twelve of Medvedev’s victories during that stretch came against Top 10 opponents.
The reigning Nitto ATP Finals champions owns a 5-3 record in Rotterdam. Medvedev’s best result at the ATP 500 came in 2019, when he reached the semi-finals before losing against Gael Monfils in three sets.
Did You Know?
The last time someone outside the Big Four held a top two spot in the FedEx ATP Rankings, Medvedev was only nine years old.