Roger Federer drops below Dominic Thiem in world rankings, Novak Djokovic maintains lead

For the first time since May 2019, there is a new member of the world’s top three as Dominic Thiem reaches a career-high of three in the world. The Austrian reached the Australian Open final but was beaten by Novak Djokovic in a five-set thriller.

But it was enough to move him closer to Federer in the rankings.

Then last month Federer announced he would be out of action until June after knee surgery.

It means the Swiss was unable to defend the 500 points he won last year through winning the Dubai Championships.

And as a result of those dropped points, Thiem has moved up to third behind Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.

It is a reward for Thiem’s consistency with three Grand Slam finals reached, one Masters 1000 title secured and eight other victories since 2018.

He is the second highest-ranked Austrian player in history, behind Thomas Muster, who became No 1 in 1996.

As a result of his injury, Federer won’t be able to defend the 3180 points he accrued this time last year.

At the upcoming ATP Masters 1000 events at Indian Wells and Miami, Federer will drop 1600 points which could see him fall to sixth if Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas enjoy strong tournaments.

Meanwhile, Great Britain’s Dan Evans has broken into the top 30 for the first time in his career after reaching the semi-finals in Dubai.

Evans, who has fought back from a ban for a failed drugs test in 2017, is now ranked 28th in the world.

ATP TOUR RANKINGS: March 2

1 – Novak Djokovic – 10220

2 – Rafael Nadal – 9850

3 – Dominic Thiem – 7045

4 – Roger Federer – 6630

5 – Daniil Medvedev – 5890

6 – Stefanos Tsitsipas – 4745

7 – Alexander Zverev – 3630

8 – Matteo Berrettini – 2860

9 – Gael Monfils – 2860

10 – David Goffin – 2555

source: express.co.uk