Rafael Nadal handed massive benefit ahead of US Open 2022 with Daniil Medvedev’s loss to Nick Kyrgios in Montreal event

Rafael Nadal has been handed a massive benefit ahead of the 2022 edition of the US Open following the defeat of Daniil Medvedev in the Montreal Masters at the hands of Nick Kyrgios on Thursday. Kyrgios’ sensational winning spree since his match against Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final earlier last month, has helped Nadal stand on the verge of reclaiming the top spot in the ATP rankings in the upcoming Masters 1000 tournament in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Present world no.1 Medvedev was defending 1000 points at the Montreal Masters having won the title in 2021. But with his 7-6, 4-6, 2-6 defeat to Kyrgios in the round of 16, the Russian is set to lose 990 points and subsequently suffer a massive drop in the rankings.

Come Monday, Medvedev will only stand 125 points clear of second-placed Alexzander Zverev in the ATP Rankings list. But with Zverev still recovering from the ankle injury he incurred at the French Open earlier in June, he is unlikely to be an immediate threat to the Russian with the German’s US Open participation in doubt.

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Nadal, meanwhile, remains at the No.3 spot in ATP Rankings with 5620 points. Having cut short of his 2021 season in the later half owing to his foot injury, Nadal has no ranking points to defend in the second half of 2022 and hence has a clear chance to push for the No.1 ranking spot and dethrone Medvedev.

Having missed the Montreal Masters with his continued recovery from the abdominal strain he incurred during Wimbledon, Nadal has confirmed his return to ATP tour in Cincinnati Masters which is slated to begin from Tuesday, August 16.

For the Spaniard top reclaim the top ranking spot, he will have to win the Masters 1000 event in Ohio, a tournament he has won only once in his career, back in 2013. In his last appearance at the event, in 2017, he had reached the quarterfinals.

However, a victory alone would not guarantee Nadal a top spot. A large part of it also depends on Medvedev’s progress at the event. The Russian will be defending 360 points in Cincinnati having reached the semi-final in 2021. Hence, for Nadal to end Cincinnati Masters as No.1 ranked player, he needs to win the title and hope Medvedev does not go past the quarterfinal round.

If it does happen for the 35-year-old, it will be the first time since February 2020 that Nadal had held the No.1 ranking in ATP.