Nadal's Journey Continues, Back At No. 1
Nadal’s Journey Continues, Back At No. 1
Spanish superstar starts his 168th week at No. 1 in the ATP Rankings
Rafael Nadal has today returned to No. 1 in the ATP Rankings, beginning his fifth stint at the pinnacle of men’s professional tennis, nine-and-a-half years after he first attained the top spot on 18 August 2008. The icon of the game, who begins his 168th week at No. 1, replaces Switzerland’s Roger Federer, who had held the top ranking since 19 February to extend his record to 309 weeks overall.
The 31-year-old Nadal, who has been omnipresent in the Top 10 since 25 April 2005, is now two weeks shy of sixth-placed John McEnroe’s mark in top spot (170).
Nadal first ascended to the top spot at the age of 22 and has spent four previous stints at No. 1 — 46 weeks between 18 August 2008 and 5 July 2009, 56 weeks from 7 June 2010 to 3 July 2011, 39 weeks between 7 October 2013 and 6 July 2014 and 26 weeks from 21 August 2017 to 18 February 2018. Only Federer (309), Pete Sampras (286), Ivan Lendl (270), Jimmy Connors (268), Novak Djokovic (223) and McEnroe (170) have spent more weeks at No. 1 since August 1973.
In each of the seasons he started his stints at No. 1, Nadal has finished atop the year-end ATP Rankings (2008, 2010, 2013 and 2017).
THE NUMBER ONES
A list in chronological order of the 26 players who have ranked No. 1 in the history of the ATP Rankings (since 1973):
| Player | Date Reached | Age | Tot. Weeks |
| Andy Murray (GBR) | 7 November 2016 | 29 | 41 |
| Novak Djokovic (SRB) | 4 July 2011 | 24 | 223 |
| Rafael Nadal (ESP) | 18 August 2008 | 22 | 168 (as of 2 April 2018) |
| Roger Federer (SUI) | 2 February 2004 | 22 | 309 |
| Andy Roddick (USA) | 3 November 2003 | 21 | 13 |
| Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP) | 8 September 2003 | 23 | 8 |
| Lleyton Hewitt (AUS) | 19 November 2001 | 20 | 80 |
| Gustavo Kuerten (BRA) | 4 December 2000 | 24 | 43 |
| Marat Safin (RUS) | 20 November 2000 | 20 | 9 |
| Patrick Rafter (AUS) | 26 July 1999 | 26 | 1 |
| Yevgeny Kafelnikov (RUS) | 3 May 1999 | 25 | 6 |
| Carlos Moya (ESP) | 15 March 1999 | 22 | 2 |
| Marcelo Rios (CHI) | 30 March 1998 | 22 | 6 |
| Thomas Muster (AUT) | 12 February 1996 | 28 | 6 |
| Andre Agassi (USA) | 10 April 1995 | 24 | 101 |
| Pete Sampras (USA) | 12 April 1993 | 21 | 286 |
| Jim Courier (USA) | 10 February 1992 | 21 | 58 |
| Boris Becker (GER) | 28 January 1991 | 23 | 12 |
| Stefan Edberg (SWE) | 13 August 1990 | 24 | 72 |
| Mats Wilander (SWE) | 12 September 1988 | 24 | 20 |
| Ivan Lendl (CZE) | 28 February 1983 | 22 | 270 |
| John McEnroe (USA) | 3 March 1980 | 21 | 170 |
| Bjorn Borg (SWE) | 23 August 1977 | 21 | 109 |
| Jimmy Connors (USA) | 29 July 1974 | 21 | 268 |
| John Newcombe (AUS) | 3 June 1974 | 30 | 8 |
| Ilie Nastase (ROU) | 23 August 1973 | 27 | 40 |
NADAL AT NO. 1
A look at the Spanish superstar’s match, Top 10 wins and finals record in his four previous stints at No. 1 in the ATP Rankings.
| Period At No. 1 | Start | End | Match Record | Winning Percentage |
| 1 | 18 August 2008 | 29 June 2009 | 56-8 | 87.5% |
| 2 | 7 June 2010 | 20 June 2011 | 84-14 | 85.7% |
| 3 | 7 October 2013 | 23 June 2014 | 54-11 | 83.1% |
| 4 | 21 August 2017 | 12 February 2018 | 22-3 | 88.0% |
| Record At No. 1 | 216-36 | 85.7% | ||
| Overall Total | 877-186 | 82.5% |
| Period At No. 1 | Start | End | Record vs. Top 10 | Finals Record |
| 1 | 18 August 2008 | 29 June 2009 | 14-5 | 5-2 |
| 2 | 7 June 2010 | 20 June 2011 | 20-8 | 6-6 |
| 3 | 7 October 2013 | 23 June 2014 | 12-7 | 4-4 |
| 4 | 21 August 2017 | 12 February 2018 | 3-3 | 2-1 |
| Record At No. 1 | 49-23 | 17-13 | ||
| Overall Total | 152-83 | 75-36 |