Zverev ends season as world number one for first time
The German benefits from Carlos Alcaraz’s exit in Shanghai.
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Alexander Zverev will end the tennis season as world number one. The German secured that position after Carlos Alcaraz lost to Belgian Zizou Bergs in Shanghai on Monday.
Alcaraz lost 7-5, 7-6 to Bergs in the third round of the Shanghai Masters. As a result, he can no longer overtake Zverev in the remaining tournaments of the season. Sport1 reports that Zverev has thereby secured finishing the year as number one for the first time in his career.
The ranking position is separate from the further course of the tournament in Shanghai. Zverev is the top seed there and had already won his sixtieth match of the season before Alcaraz’s exit. The German is still competing for the tournament title in China, while Alcaraz has been eliminated after his defeat.
For Zverev, finishing the year represents the latest highlight in a season in which he has secured the most victories, according to the ATP organisation. The official tournament website described him at the beginning of October as the player with the most wins of the season and as one of the leading contenders for the title in Shanghai.
Alcaraz returned this year after a lengthy absence caused by a wrist injury. According to the tournament’s official preview, the Spaniard missed four and a half months of the season, after which he won a title in Tokyo. His defeat by Bergs ends his run in Shanghai, but does not mean that his comeback has failed.
The new world number one owes his position to more than a single match. Zverev accumulated enough points over the course of the season, while his main rivals dropped points or played in fewer tournaments. Alcaraz’s defeat was the moment when the remaining mathematical possibility disappeared.
The development marks a shift at the top of men’s tennis. Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have regularly dominated the biggest matches in recent seasons; Zverev now joins them as the player leading the rankings at the end of the year. That does not automatically mean he has won every major tournament or that he is the favourite in every head-to-head match.
The Shanghai Masters continues until 18 October. Zverev can further underline his new status there, but his position as number one at the end of the year is already secure. The ATP rankings reward performances across the whole season, not just the result of the ongoing tournament.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The current result, Alcaraz’s elimination and Zverev’s year-end world number one position have been checked against multiple sources. The text distinguishes between the ranking and the ongoing tournament.
- confirmed Alexander Zverev will end 2026 as world number one. — Reported by Sport1 after Alcaraz’s elimination. source
- confirmed Carlos Alcaraz lost to Zizou Bergs in Shanghai 7-5, 7-6(4). — The result appears in current reporting by AS. source
- confirmed Zverev had secured his sixtieth victory of 2026 in Shanghai. — Mentioned by the official tournament website. source
- confirmed The Shanghai Masters runs from 7 to 18 October 2026. — Listed on the ATP tournament page. source
Editor's note
Alcaraz’s exit and the new year-end world number one have been confirmed by current sports sources. Zverev’s further position in the ongoing Shanghai tournament is separate from the year-end ranking, which has already been decided.Sources
- Offiziell: Zverev wird Nummer eins der Tennis-Weltrangliste — Sport1
- Bergs frena a Alcaraz — AS
- Scouting Report: Zverev & Alcaraz eye Shanghai glory — Rolex Shanghai Masters/ATP
- ATP Masters 1000 Shanghai overview — ATP Tour
More on this in Dutch media
- NRC — „tennis alexander zverev”
- NU.nl — „tennis alexander zverev”
- De Telegraaf — „tennis alexander zverev”