Jannik Sinner becomes new world number one and reaches French Open semi-finals

Jannik Sinner became world number one without knowing it as he reached the semi-finals of the French Open for the first time.

While the Italian was beating Grigor Dimitrov in straight sets, Novak Djokovic withdrew from the tournament with a knee injury.

Djokovic’s departure means Sinner will rise above the Serbian to the top of the rankings when they are updated on Monday.

The 22-year-old, who is the first man from Italy to be world number one, sank Bulgarian veteran Dimitrov 6-2 6-4 7-6 (3).

“First of all it’s every player’s dream to be number one in the world,” he said.

“But in the other way to see Novak retiring for everyone is disappointing, so I wish him a speedy recovery.

“My performance was very solid, especially the first two sets. I’m very happy how I reacted later and happy to be in the semis.

“It’s going to be a huge pleasure to step once again on this court.”