Alexander Zverev’s first tournament appearance as world number one ended in disappointment on Wednesday as he suffered a straight-sets defeat to Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti at the Paris Masters, while Novak Djokovic also crashed out after losing to Australian qualifier Rinky Hijikata.
The defeats formed part of a remarkable day of upsets at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament, with former world number one Daniil Medvedev and eighth seed Alex de Minaur also eliminated.
Zverev, who recently climbed to the top of the ATP rankings for the first time in his career, lost 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 to the 24th-ranked Musetti in their second-round encounter.
The German struggled to maintain his advantage after a closely contested opening set, eventually losing the tie-break before Musetti dominated the second set to complete the victory.
Speaking after the match, Zverev said he was annoyed by what he described as the need to justify his position at the top of men’s tennis.
“I feel like I’m the only world number one in tennis history that has to explain why it’s okay for me to be world number one, which I find quite difficult, because I think I deserve to be where I am, even though I lost today,” he said.
Musetti described the encounter as a major challenge, saying he was pleased to have taken his opportunities against the top-ranked German.
The defeat marked a disappointing start to Zverev’s reign at number one, although he has already secured qualification for the season-ending ATP Finals.
Djokovic also endured a frustrating afternoon, losing 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 to world number 83 Hijikata.
The 39-year-old Serbian initially appeared in control after taking the opening set, but the Australian qualifier fought back to level the match before securing victory in the deciding set.
Hijikata broke Djokovic’s serve in the second set and maintained his momentum in the decider, capitalising on two consecutive service breaks to complete one of the tournament’s biggest surprises.
The defeat ended Djokovic’s hopes of claiming an eighth Paris Masters title and effectively ended his bid to qualify for this year’s ATP Finals.
The Serbian, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, indicated that rest would be his immediate priority after the tournament.
Hijikata will next face Argentina’s Tomas Martin Etcheverry, who also produced an upset by defeating eighth seed Alex de Minaur 7-6 (7/2), 6-3.
Medvedev, another former world number one, was also eliminated after losing 6-4, 6-4 to Peru’s Ignacio Buse.
The result added to the list of unexpected exits involving established names at the Paris tournament.
Seventh seed Frances Tiafoe also failed to progress, losing 3-6, 6-1, 7-6 (11/9) to Frenchman Quentin Halys in a closely fought encounter.
Halys’ victory also had implications for compatriot Arthur Fils, who secured qualification for the ATP Finals, scheduled to take place in Turin from November 15 to 22.
Despite the exits of several leading players, second seed Carlos Alcaraz was scheduled to face American Alex Michelsen later on Wednesday. The match had not been confirmed as completed in the latest results available at the time of publication.
Alcaraz, a seven-time Grand Slam champion, entered the tournament seeking to avoid another early disappointment in Paris after his opening-match defeat at the event last year.
The Paris Masters, one of the ATP Tour’s prestigious Masters 1000 events, is the final tournament in that category before the ATP Finals.
Wednesday’s results underlined the unpredictable nature of the competition, with several established contenders departing while lower-ranked players seized opportunities to advance.
