Holding onto World No. 1
Despite his struggles in the latter half of the 2016 season, Novak Djokovic had an immensely successful start to the year, winning the first two Grand Slams in addition to a slew of other titles. That means, however, that he is defending a significant number of points this season – giving Murray, who made both Slam finals but did not win, the advantage here. Should Murray better his performances at the Australian and French Open – in addition to picking up a number of Djokovic’s 2016 titles, he should, if he is able to keep his consistency, retain the World No. 1 ranking for some time.
Djokovic has, of course, declared himself at the Qatar Open – but not before a significant fight back from Murray, who as World No. 1 still has the upper hand.
The Serb, as the winner, is defending 2,000 points at the Australian Open. Murray, as runner-up, is defending 1,200.
As of the end of the ATP Qatar Open, Murray is on top with 12,560 points, and Djokovic is second with 11,780; that gives Murray a 780 point lead. Although this is an unlikely scenario, even if the pair both see first-round exits at the Australian Open, it is Murray’s lead that will extend.
Should Djokovic successfully defend his title at the Australian Open, he will need Murray to exit by the quarter-finals if he wants to wrest the No. 1 ranking back from the Scot. It’s a long ask and an unlikely outcome, giving the consistent Murray a comfortable time until the clay-court season to improve on the flaws that are still part of his game.
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