Rafael Nadal celebrates ranking milestone ahead of Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic

The ATP ranking list is back and running for two weeks, allowing players to gain places or keep the points they won in 2019. Rafael Nadal had decided to skip Cincinnati and the US Open but his position in the top-2 has been safe at the moment, holding 2000 points from the last year's US Open and achieving a massive ranking milestone on Monday. Nadal has become the first player with 550 weeks in the top-2, passing Roger Federer on that list before the coronavirus outbreak and finally adding new weeks to his tally to achieve the record. For the first time since 2002, Federer had failed to enter the top-2 throughout 2019, allowing Rafa to catch him and become the first player since 1973 with 529 weeks in the top-2 in November. After fantastic progress in his early years on the Tour, Nadal became world no. 2 for the first time in 2005 following the title in Stuttgart in July, claiming no less than 11 ATP crowns that year as a teenager and standing as the biggest rival of Roger Federer, who was miles in front of all the opponents in his prime years.

In 2006 and 2007, Nadal established himself as the second-stronger link on the Tour before finally passing Roger in August 2008 to become world no. 1 for the first time following triumphs at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Nadal's first stint in the top-2 had lasted for four years, returning there in 2013 and finding the form again after staying away from the privileged positions between October 2014 and Roland Garros 2017, missing a chance to add more weeks to his tally. Never leaving the top-10 since April 2005, Nadal has found the ultimate form again in the last three and a half years, enjoying another long run in the top-2 that has propelled him ahead of Roger Federer and all the others. Nadal claimed two Majors and two Masters 1000 titles in 2019, overcoming a deficit to Novak Djokovic and finishing the season as the year-end no. 1 player for the fifth time, and the second in three years.

Rafa led Spain towards the Davis Cup Finals crown in Madrid, hoping for more of the same at the ATP Cup in January. Nadal and his teammates pushed Spain into another final, facing Serbia in the battle for the trophy. Spain won the first match before Djokovic defeated Nadal, leveling the score and clinching his country's triumph in the doubles encounter. Rafa lost the ATP throne at the Australian Open, suffering the quarter-final loss to Dominic Thiem and traveling to Kuwait and South Africa where he played exho matches against David Ferrer and Roger Federer. In his last tournaments of the season so far, Rafa claimed the 85th ATP title in Acapulco, staying away from the court ever since and preparing a comeback in Rome and Roland Garros. 

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2QWzMj3