Yannick Sinner's unexpected absence from the courts until 2027 has caused complete chaos in the men's tour and opened the doors wide for second-line players. The battle for the final tournament in Turin, which seemed almost decided, turned into a speed hunt for the remaining points, where Novak Djokovic found himself at the epicenter of attention. Sinner's decision to miss the end of the season freed up a safe place for Italy, after Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev had already secured participation there. This automatically raised the stakes for the upcoming tournaments and completely changed the Serbian champion's calculations.
With the triumph of the tournament in Beijing, Novak Djokovic collected 2840 points and sent a clear message to his competitors. Although at this stage of his career the Serb carefully doses his participations and spares his body, the record holder of Grand Slam titles does not hide that ranking among the top eight in Turin remains one of his main competitive goals until the end of the year.
Novak now faces two key challenges - the tournaments of the – "Masters 1000" series in Shanghai and Paris. With a strong performance in China and France, Djokovic will hold his fate entirely in his own hands and will guarantee himself a fight for another major trophy in the final phase of the season. Behind Ben Shelton, who with 4430 points has practically secured a ticket to Turin (according to the predictions, 4500 will be needed for ranking), there is a serious accumulation: he is followed by Flavio Cobolli (3540 points), Frances Tiafoe (3380 points), Arthur Fiss (3285 points) and Daniil Medvedev (3020 points).
The period is extremely turbulent for the Russian. Along with the fluctuating form, Medvedev also suffered a serious blow with the deduction of 200 points due to his disqualification in Beijing, which pushed him into the risk zone and brought him additional pressure before Shanghai.
Immediately behind Djokovic (2840 points) is Alex de Minaur with 2690 points, while the sensation of the season - the young Spaniard Rafael Hoddar, has 2519 points. In his debut year on the professional tour, Hodar managed to stay in the fight for Turin despite early eliminations at the US Open and in Tokyo, but for a new feat he will need a real miracle in the remaining "Masters" tournaments. A chance from a lower position also lurks the other contenders, separated by only a few wins: Taylor Fritz (2490), Jakub Menshick (2405), Tommy Paul (2385) and Felix Auger-Aliassime (2375).
With thousands of points at stake in the strongest competitions until the end of the campaign, any success in the early stages or reaching the semifinals can overturn the standings in a matter of hours. While young hopes chase their debut entry into history, Novak Djokovic is counting on his vast experience and championship mentality to consolidate his dominance in yet another generational change.