While the final elite tournament of the year, the ATP Finals, is underway in Turin, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner were locked in a tight battle to determine who would finish the year as the World No. 1. Ultimately, the Spanish star won the dispute, achieving a record that Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic were all unable to match.
This marks the second time Alcaraz has finished as the year-end No. 1, having previously claimed that title back in 2022. In doing so, he became just the second player in ATP history to secure multiple year-end No. 1 rankings before turning 23, joining only Lleyton Hewitt (2001-02).
Although Djokovic holds the overall record for most times finishing the year in the top spot (eight different occasions), while Federer and Nadal did so five times each, none of them managed to do it multiple times before reaching the age of 23, as Alcaraz has now done.
Alcaraz entered the ATP Finals with a 1,050-point advantage over Sinner. The Spanish player did not squander that lead, ensuring he finished the year as the No. 1 ranked player to close out 2025.
After defeating Alex de Minaur and Taylor Fritz in his first two group stage matches, his final victory against Lorenzo Musetti served to secure the No. 1 ranking through the start of 2026. The Spaniard will now face Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semifinals, after the Canadian defeated Alexander Zverev.
Alcaraz on finishing as No.1
One of the conditions for Alcaraz to reclaim the World No. 1 ranking was to win all three matches in the group stage. After defeating Musetti, the Spaniard achieved this objective and secured the top spot to close 2025.
“The match was really important for me, playing for year-end No 1. It means the world to me, to be honest,” Alcaraz said, via the ATP official website. “The year-end No 1 is always a goal. At the beginning of the year, I saw the No 1 really, really far away [with] Jannik winning almost every tournament he plays”.
“But from the middle of the season ’til now, I gave myself the goal for the No 1 because I thought it was there. I had the chance to play great tennis in a lot of tournaments in a row to put myself in with a chance to be close to Jannik for the No 1. Then in the last three, four tournaments of the year, [I was] fighting toe to toe with Jannik for this spot and then finally I got it. For me, it means everything,” the Spaniard added.
Sinner praises Alcaraz’s achievement
In contrast, the Italian missed the chance to finish as World No. 1 for the second time in his career, having finished 2024 in the top spot. However, Sinner acknowledged that Alcaraz fully deserves this achievement after having an exceptional season.
“I’m happy for him, but if I told you I was super happy… I’d be telling a lie! But he deserves it, he’s had an incredible season: he’s won two Slams, eight tournaments. He’s playing at a very high level, he’s competitive on any surface,” Sinner said about Alcaraz.
“He had the pressure too, he managed it very well, but I’m glad for him. He’s a really good guy, he has a great team around him and he’s earned these achievements. For me, this is motivation for next year. If another player were to end up No 1, I’d always choose him — he deserves it,” he concluded.