ATP Tour

Zverev has a major title; now he wants World No. 1

Alexander Zverev lifted a heavy weight off his shoulders this year when he became a first-time major champion at Roland Garros. After years of striving, coming agonisingly close, the German finally secured that breakthrough moment that had long eluded him.

The 29-year-old remains hungry for more. Not just in terms of adding to his trophy cabinet, but by further cementing his place in tennis history. The top seed at this week’s National Bank Open presented by Rogers, Zverev was asked if becoming the No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings is a priority.

“Of course, that's a goal. That's definitely a goal of mine,” Zverev said in his pre-tournament press conference. "I think still playing the best tennis possible should always be the number one goal because then the results will follow. Winning tournaments will follow. Rankings will follow.

“So as long as you focus on improving yourself, improving your game and trying to play your best, I think that everything else is just something that will follow after that.”

Jannik Sinner currently holds a commanding lead atop the PIF ATP Rankings with 13,450 points to Zverev's 8,480. But that gap does not tell the full story. Zverev sits just 1,410 points behind Sinner in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, which tracks points earned in the calendar year. The battle for the top spot could heat up as the year continues, with roughly three and a half months remaining in the 2026 season.

Zverev’s return to action in Montreal marks his first time competing since falling to Sinner in the Wimbledon final. The Italian Sinner improved to 5-0 this season against Zverev and extended his Lexus ATP Head2Head series lead to 11-4, including 10 consecutive wins against the German. Despite Sinner’s recent dominance in their rivalry, Zverev is remaining optimistic.

“I think we've played each other the most out of anybody on tour, but [also] because I feel like we've gotten to each other more times than not this year, which is also positive,” he said. “It's not a positive that I keep losing to the same guy, or I have lost to the same guy multiple times, but I think it definitely shows that we were probably the two most stable players on tour this year, and that's a positive, I think.”

Zverev enters Montreal with a 44-11 season record, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index, including his title run at the French major.

“I've talked about it a lot — It's a satisfaction, for sure,” the 25-time tour-level titlist said of his Paris triumph. “I've waited for that Grand Slam title a very long time, in a way, and of course I'm very happy that it came.”

The 2017 champion at the Canadian ATP Masters 1000 event, Zverev will begin this year’s campaign against Italian Lorenzo Sonego or Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor.

Zverev, excited to be back in action and seeking his second title of the season, said: “I went on holiday for a week and then after, I started practising and preparing myself the best I can for this swing.”