Murray becomes new world No. 1
Scot ends Djokovic's 122-week reign, after Raonic's withdrawal
Britain's Andy Murray became the new world No. 1 yesterday, after Milos Raonic withdrew from their Paris Masters semi-final with injury.
The walkover will see Murray, 29, move to the top of the rankings for the first time in his career after replacing long-time incumbent Novak Djokovic.
The Scot's climb to the ATP rankings' summit caps a remarkable year which has seen him win a second Wimbledon crown and mount a successful defence of his Olympic title in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in August.
Raonic said he had suffered a muscle tear in his right leg in his previous match, sending Murray through to face John Isner in today's final.
"This morning, I had trouble waking up and getting out of bed. So I went to sort of clear any serious diagnosis," said Raonic, who hurt himself in Friday's quarter-final win over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
"Did some tests. Did an MRI half an hour ago, let's say. They found that I have a tear, Grade 1 tear in the right quad.
"Unfortunately, I'm not able to compete against Andy today in the second semi-final."
LEAPFROG
Murray had needed to reach the final to end Djokovic's 122-week stay at the top, following the Serb's defeat by Marin Cilic in the last eight.
But he didn't need to hit a single ball as Raonic announced his withdrawal in a hastily-arranged press conference.
Murray will be confirmed as the new No. 1 when the latest rankings are released tomorrow.
He will meet Isner as he targets a maiden Paris Masters title after the big-serving American toppled Cilic 6-4, 6-3 in the first semi-final.
Meanwhile, Djokovic insisted that he is unfazed by losing his No. 1 ranking to Murray following his quarter-final defeat by Cilic at the Paris Masters on Friday.
Djokovic, the record four-time champion in Paris, limped to a 6-4, 7-6 (7/2) defeat - his first loss in 15 meetings with Cilic, reflecting his waning dominance in the wake of completing a career Grand Slam at the French Open in June.
"Look, I'm aware that I'm not the only player in the world that wants to win when he gets out on the court," said 29-year-old Djokovic, adding that his current priority wasn't the rankings.
"I have to get to the - first of all, the state of mind where I'm able to perform as well as I want to match after match. I was not able to find that level for last couple of months.
"So I'm in the process at the moment, and it's going to obviously take some time really for me to redefine all these things.
"But I'm still here, and I feel like I'm on the right path. I'm in a better state of mind than I was some time ago. That's all I'm thinking about right now." - Wire Services.
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