Alexander Zverev will become the 30th player to reach No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings next Monday, 2 November.
The German guaranteed that Monday will be his date of ascension by reaching the quarter-finals of the Erste Bank Open in Vienna. He defeated Tallon Griekspoor in the second round Thursday at the ATP 500 event.
"[It is] very special. To have the feeling to be on the top of the world is amazing," Zverev said. "It is different than winning a tournament or a title, but it's such a special feeling to know that the No. 1 is going to be next to your name when the new rankings come out."
Zverev will become the second-oldest player to reach World No. 1 for the first time. Aged 29 years, six months, he will only trail John Newcombe, who was 30 years old when he climbed to the mountaintop in 1974, a year after the creation of the PIF ATP Rankings.
Zverev has won many of the biggest titles in the sport, including two Nitto ATP Finals crowns, two major titles, an Olympic gold medal and seven ATP Masters 1000 trophies. Now, more than four years after reaching World No. 2 for the first time, he can add becoming the 30th member of the ATP No. 1 Club to his resume.
The soon-to-be No. 1 will pass Jannik Sinner, who during his current stint has been at the top since 13 April. Zverev is also guaranteed ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by PIF honours.
The 29-year-old has climbed to the pinnacle in large part thanks to his success at the Grand Slam tournaments this year. He claimed the first two major crowns of his career at Roland Garros and the US Open, while he also reached the Wimbledon final and the Australian Open semi-finals.
Zverev, also a finalist this year at the Masters 1000 event in Madrid, owns a 64-16 record in 2026, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. Only Daniil Medvedev has also reached the 50-wins mark for the season.
Zverev will be just the second German man to become World No. 1, joining Boris Becker. His countryman reached the pinnacle on 28 January 1991.
There will now be five active players in the ATP No. 1 Club: Zverev, Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Medvedev and Novak Djokovic.
