Alexander Zverev received the ATP's World No. 1 trophy at a ceremony at the Paris Masters on Monday, 2 November 2026, on the day the new rankings showed the German at the top for the first time in his career. He is the 30th player to hold the No. 1 spot since the ATP Rankings began.
The decisive step came in Vienna the previous Thursday, 29 October, when Zverev beat Tallon Griekspoor of the Netherlands 6-4, 7-5 to reach the quarter-finals of the Erste Bank Open. That win guaranteed him first place in Monday's update whatever happened next, and a semi-final exit later in the week made no difference. He takes over from Jannik Sinner, who had been No. 1 since 13 April before injury ended his season early. Sinner drops to second, with Carlos Alcaraz third.
Zverev is only the second German man to top the rankings, following Boris Becker, who first reached No. 1 on 28 January 1991. The ATP has also confirmed that he will finish 2026 as year-end No. 1, something no German had done before.
His rise rests on the best season of his career. He won his first major title at Roland Garros, added the US Open, reached the Wimbledon final, where he lost to Sinner, and made the semi-finals of the Australian Open. By the end of October he had reached a Tour-leading 13 quarter-finals this year. His wider record already included two Nitto ATP Finals titles, an Olympic gold medal and seven ATP Masters 1000 crowns.
Paris, where he lifted the trophy in 2024, is his first tournament as the world's top-ranked player. "To have the feeling to be on the top of the world is amazing," Zverev said after clinching the spot in Vienna.
Source: ATP Tour, UPI, Morung Express
