Alexander Zverev has gone about his business at Wimbledon in a formidable manner. He has reached the semi-final in all three Grand Slam tournaments this year, and he could be rewarded for it with the world number two position in reach. If he defeats Arthur Fery, he will leap above Carlos Alcaraz with the ranking set to affect the upcoming US Open.
Zverev’s Consistent Grand Slam Form
The German has been the best of the rest in 2026, putting up some brilliant displays and consistently going deep in big tournaments, the latest being Wimbledon. While Jannik Sinner has dominated him on court with the Italian still a major stumbling block, Zverev has been enjoying his time on court since Alcaraz’s injury, not having to face any of the top two until the final at least while Novak Djokovic is also not regularly seen on court these days aside from Grand Slam tournaments.
Zverev reached the semi-final of the Australian Open at the start of the year, having the chance to serve it out to win a thrilling five-set thriller. Instead, Alcaraz found another gear and took him down in a brilliant match of tennis. Since then, Zverev has been regularly bettered by Sinner at Masters 1000 level in the semi-final stages. At Indian Wells, Miami and Monte-Carlo he suffered the same frustrating result.
Madrid was the first event where Alcaraz and Sinner were both not featuring, allowing Zverev a free pathway to the final without facing a challenge from the top two. He showcased his level above the rest of the field, only to get thrashed in the final. Roland Garros was the ultimate turning point. With Sinner and Djokovic suffering early exits, he was the favourite to win the title. Over the course of the year, these deep runs had earned him a huge tally of points. He was set to collect another 2000 while breaking new ground in winning a maiden major title against Flavio Cobolli.
Alcaraz’s Injury Battle and Ranking Drop
As Zverev gained ranking points, Alcaraz was losing them. Carlos Alcaraz has not played a tennis match since the Barcelona Open, winning his opening round match of the ATP 500 tournament before withdrawing due to a wrist injury. He had made it to the final of the Monte-Carlo Masters, losing to Sinner while being toppled off the number one spot.
Alcaraz did not participate in Madrid while his title defences at Rome and Roland Garros went unanswered. The injury was so serious that he was unable to feature in any of the grass tournaments, including Wimbledon most importantly.
The Ranking Points Shift
Thirteen hundred points are set to come off Alcaraz’s tally, leaving him on 8,160 points. Heading to Barcelona back in mid-April, he was on 13,240. This highlights the huge drop-off and the untimely nature of the injury.
In contrast, Zverev was on 5,555. Now, he is sitting pretty with 7,980 following his semi-final run at Wimbledon. Wins over Alexander Blockx, Valentin Royer, Marcos Giron, Jiri Lehecka and Taylor Fritz set him up with a tie against British hero Arthur Fery. A win on Friday will boost his overall tally on the ATP.
The potential shift in rankings could see Alexander Zverev ascend to world number two, with the outcome of his match against Arthur Fery determining whether he overtakes Carlos Alcaraz.