ATP Rankings.....And race to London!!!!

Race to London Ranking

Rank, Name & Nationality	Points	Week Change	Tourn Played
1Djokovic, Novak (SRB)	9,910	0	14
2Federer, Roger (SUI)	8,905	0	16
3Nadal, Rafael (ESP)	6,840	0	15
4Murray, Andy (GBR)	6,730	0	16
5Ferrer, David (ESP)	4,735	0	19
6Del Potro, Juan Martin (ARG)	3,750	0	17
7Berdych, Tomas (CZE)	3,580	0	19
8Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried (FRA)	2,745	0	19
9Tipsarevic, Janko (SRB)	2,720	0	21
10Almagro, Nicolas (ESP)	2,375	0	22
11Isner, John (USA)	2,250	0	22
12Gasquet, Richard (FRA)	2,110	1	19
12Monaco, Juan (ARG)	2,110	0	19
14Raonic, Milos (CAN)	1,975	0	19
15Cilic, Marin (CRO)	1,970	0	19
16Kohlschreiber, Philipp (GER)	1,715	1	22
17Simon, Gilles (FRA)	1,680	-1	22
18Wawrinka, Stanislas (SUI)	1,640	1	18
19Haas, Tommy (GER)	1,476	-1	17
20Dolgopolov, Alexandr (UKR)	1,475	0	20

1Federer, Roger (SUI)	11,805	0	21
2Djokovic, Novak (SRB)	10,470	0	19
3Murray, Andy (GBR)	8,570	1	21
4Nadal, Rafael (ESP)	7,515	-1	20
5Ferrer, David (ESP)	5,915	0	24
6Berdych, Tomas (CZE)	4,830	1	24
7Tsonga, Jo-Wilfried (FRA)	4,520	-1	26
8Del Potro, Juan Martin (ARG)	3,890	0	22
9Tipsarevic, Janko (SRB)	3,285	0	29
10Isner, John (USA)	2,610	0	25
11Monaco, Juan (ARG)	2,565	0	23
12Almagro, Nicolas (ESP)	2,475	0	28
13Cilic, Marin (CRO)	2,455	0	24
14Gasquet, Richard (FRA)	2,165	0	23
15Raonic, Milos (CAN)	2,080	1	24
16Nishikori, Kei (JPN)	1,870	2	24
17Wawrinka, Stanislas (SUI)	1,865	2	23
18Kohlschreiber, Philipp (GER)	1,855	2	28
19Dolgopolov, Alexandr (UKR)	1,815	-4	27
20Simon, Gilles (FRA)	1,800	-3	28

Interesting to see that despite his early loss Fed is a 1400+ points ahead of Djoko, whereas in teh race he is a 1000 points behind.

Nadal going to number 4 quicker than expected.

Nole's doing well for someone who's being constantly reminded about 2011 by the media .

From memory, he does not have many points to defend till the end of the year, so it will be an interesting race for the year end number one.

With the WTF moved to the beginning of November, the schedule is more packed than ever now!

http://www.atpworldtour.com/Tournaments/Event-Calendar.aspx

September features Davis Cup semi-final and two weeks (4 tournaments) of 250 level tournaments.
October gets crazy with 2 masters (Shanghai and Paris Bercy) as well as 2 weeks (4 tourns.) of 500 tournaments incl Beijing, Tokio, Basel and Valencia. plus 2 250 ones.
Basically the season ends on the 10th of November at the WTF, plus Davis Cup final to finish it off.

And then the loooooooong break till the new year.

noleisthebest wrote:Nole's doing well for someone who's being constantly reminded about 2011 by the media .

From memory, he does not have many points to defend till the end of the year, so it will be an interesting race for the year end number one.

Yes or more pragmatically, he is a 1000pts ahead of Federer, so he will have to maintain that gap or even can afford to lose 1004 pts to Fed by end of year.

He,he, never saw it THAT pragmatically...ok, so he'd better start raking those points in asap...

I'm curious to know what you think about Fed's priorities for the rest of the season?

Fed simply need to do even better than what he did last year during this time. But even that may not be enough. He is scheduled to play Shanghai, Basel, Bercy and WTF. So he can potentially only gain points in Shanghai. US open in that regard was very important.

Lets see how it goes.

noleisthebest wrote:He,he, never saw it THAT pragmatically...ok, so he'd better start raking those points in asap...

I'm curious to know what you think about Fed's priorities for the rest of the season?

Well, it's clear. Finishing year end at number 1. What else can he want? a 7th Masters? Sure that woudl be his second aim....and winning Basle of course.

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:Fed simply need to do even better than what he did last year during this time. But even that may not be enough. He is scheduled to play Shanghai, Basel, Bercy and WTF. So he can potentially only gain points in Shanghai. US open in that regard was very important.

Lets see how it goes.

As mentioned, it's not so much about defending as it is to achieve 1004 more points than Djoko by year end. Tough task but nothing extraordinary. There are 4000 points to take, he needs to grab 1000 more than Djoko. If his back holds, it's perfectly possible.

Tenez wrote:

noleisthebest wrote:He,he, never saw it THAT pragmatically...ok, so he'd better start raking those points in asap...

I'm curious to know what you think about Fed's priorities for the rest of the season?

Well, it's clear. Finishing year end at number 1. What else can he want? a 7th Masters? Sure that woudl be his second aim....and winning Basle of course.

I just wasn't sure how much all that means to him right now. He's done beyond what anyone expected this year, I thought he may not want to be pushing himself too much.
I can't begin to imagine what goes through his head when he thinks of 2013....let alone 2016 and Rio Olympics he said he wouldn't mind playing in.

I love the fact both him and Serena have reasserted themselves this year, but that there were other, new names emerging on the big scene, as well.

I must be really tired, I've only just now realised Nadal is not number 3 any more.
How he wished for that 2 year ranking now....

I wonder when and how he's giong to return....I suppose the "if" option is still out of question?

Well I was only thinking of possible goals he may want to aim.

I have always said that number one was an important goal for him cause it proves that he is still the best despite the new generation. Number 1 is simply the best achievement in tennis...while you are number one. This is the time when the whole world looks at you and asks something from you. AFter that, you have titles, fine and history, no one can take from you but no one really cares either. Laver has won 2 GS...great but no-one is giving him anything for that now. As Borg said, it;s all about being number one. It's like a drug and you get addicted to it. Losing it must be painful.

It's something no player can keep for ever so they try to do their best to hold to that spot for as long as possible. Finishing number 1 for a record 6th year is not something one would want to disregard. Same for Djoko....2 in a row woudl be a good way to make up for those disappointing losses.

Tenez wrote:Well I was only thinking of possible goals he may want to aim.

I have always said that number one was an important goal for him cause it proves that he is still the best despite the new generation. Number 1 is simply the best achievement in tennis...while you are number one. This is the time when the whole world looks at you and asks something from you. AFter that, you have titles, fine and history, no one can take from you but no one really cares either. Laver has won 2 GS...great but no-one is giving him anything for that now. As Borg said, it;s all about being number one. It's like a drug and you get addicted to it. Losing it must be painful.

It's something no player can keep for ever so they try to do their best to hold to that spot for as long as possible. Finishing number 1 for a record 6th year is not something one would want to disregard. Same for Djoko....2 in a row woudl be a good way to make up for those disappointing losses.

Interesting.
I believe Nadal managed only one year as number one, which makes it even more interesting if Nole manages to get it back.
He should be very hungry and I can see him do it. Nice to have something exciting at the tail end of the year now that slams have finished.

Disappointed for Djokovic but this loss puts Roger in a good position to make a run for the end year ranking
It will be another great record for Roget to tie Pete Sampras with the amount of year end ranking

noleisthebest wrote:
I believe Nadal managed only one year as number one, which makes it even more interesting if Nole manages to get it back.

Nadal has 2 YE #1s. 2008 and 2010.

Tenez wrote:

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:Fed simply need to do even better than what he did last year during this time. But even that may not be enough. He is scheduled to play Shanghai, Basel, Bercy and WTF. So he can potentially only gain points in Shanghai. US open in that regard was very important.

Lets see how it goes.

As mentioned, it's not so much about defending as it is to achieve 1004 more points than Djoko by year end. Tough task but nothing extraordinary. There are 4000 points to take, he needs to grab 1000 more than Djoko. If his back holds, it's perfectly possible.

Right. This is a close race to YE#1 in along time. I think 2003 was the last time when YE#1 race was a close one. Or was it?

First things first, he needs to do well in DC playoffs this time. Its against Netherlands which look like an easy one one paper. But it also looked easy on paper in DC QF against USA and swiss-team got trounced 0-5.

DC points only count a little, but this should give in some form and confidence going into shanghai. Shanghai is going to be very important.

YE #1

2011 - Djokovic (13,630)
2010 - Nadal (12,450)
2009 - Federer (10,550)
2008 - Nadal (6,675)
2007 - Federer (7,180)
2006 - Federer (8,370)
2005 - Federer (6,725)
2004 - Federer (6,335)
2003 - Roddick (4,535)
2002 - Hewitt (4,485)
2001 - Hewitt (4,365)

From ATP website - the unreliable one

Yes Nadal finished 2 years at number one but I don't think he was number for much more than a year and a half.

Nadal, although I'm sure he loved being number one, never seemed comfortable in that role.
He always came across as somebody who kind of borrowed it like a toy from Federer to play with it a bit and then returned it like a good boy.

With Nole, it's different. I think he enjoyed the limelight very much, but that 2011 piled on a lot of various pressures on him, plus there were the Olympics on top, still I think he's done well and I'd love it if he could get it back by the end of this year.

noleisthebest wrote:Nadal, although I'm sure he loved being number one, never seemed comfortable in that role.
He always came across as somebody who kind of borrowed it like a toy from Federer to play with it a bit and then returned it like a good boy.

What do you mean? Why would you think he wasn't comfortable being a #1?

noleisthebest wrote: With Nole, it's different. I think he enjoyed the limelight very much, but that 2011 piled on a lot of various pressures on him, plus there were the Olympics on top, still I think he's done well and I'd love it if he could get it back by the end of this year.

Isn't that uncomfortable?

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:

noleisthebest wrote: With Nole, it's different. I think he enjoyed the limelight very much, but that 2011 piled on a lot of various pressures on him, plus there were the Olympics on top, still I think he's done well and I'd love it if he could get it back by the end of this year.

Isn't that uncomfortable?

Not in the least, as you know Nole announced when he was 19 his goal was to be number one which is why he got so much initial stick from Federer as being cocky, and daring to even think that way, which is why they only respect each other at best.

In my opinion, it's was a lot more difficult to be number one in 2011 than, eg. 2007. In 2011 you had to overtake two players who held 26 slams combined (now 28).

noleisthebest wrote:

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:

noleisthebest wrote: With Nole, it's different. I think he enjoyed the limelight very much, but that 2011 piled on a lot of various pressures on him, plus there were the Olympics on top, still I think he's done well and I'd love it if he could get it back by the end of this year.

Isn't that uncomfortable?

Not in the least, as you know Nole announced when he was 19 his goal was to be number one which is why he got so much initial stick from Federer as being cocky, and daring to even think that way, which is why they only respect each other at best.

In my opinion, it's was a lot more difficult to be number one in 2011 than, eg. 2007. In 2011 you had to overtake two players who held 26 slams combined (now 28).

Okay. But this is not what I asked nitb. I want to know how is it different for Djokovic to be #1 while Nadal is uncomfortable? You yourself wrote about various pressure, so how is that comfortable for him? Did he deal with the pressure well enough?

Nole was/is not uncomfortable at all, that was my point, on the contrary - he relishes the honour.
I remember Nadal always being kind of sheepish and going on how Federer is the best, and excusing his existence kind of thing...none of that - I belong here- kind of air about him.

noleisthebest wrote:..I belong here- kind of air about him.

Well, I'm not seeing anything other than a fan's words of praise for her favourite player coming in here.

Didn't Djokovic say after the Miami 2011 win that for him Nadal is the greatest player ever?

Didn't he say anything about the difficulty in repeating 2011?

If he was comfortable why would need to burn himself playing more than 3 consecutive weeks of tennis to give himself a chance to close on Fed even to risk being tired at USopen.

Have you ever seen Fed playing tournaments that way to gain points to stay in the race? Fed wasn't even worried about being down to #4 when Murray after having talked so much about player's health, burnout due to packed schedule and a strike, suddenly packed up his bags and went on a points collecting spree in Asia.

Now that looked comfortable for Fed. Did anything on similar note happened with Djokovic?

[quote="raiders_of_the_lost_ark"]

noleisthebest wrote:

Didn't Djokovic say after the Miami 2011 win that for him Nadal is the greatest player ever?

He's said it for the sake of saying it, I know what he thinks. He once said (about 4 years ago) he could not stand either Nadal or Federer, and I believed it 100%.
It's a funny thing how they all carry on with the media, Nadal's interviews are by far the most PR-ed. Nole used to be really interesting but now he's toned down a lot since he became number one. Fed's been the most interesting as he just says is as it is which I really like whther I agree with him or not. (I usually do )

What they say to the media in an interview is just what PR want them to say and get the sponsors/cash contracts rolling in.

Nadal was #1 from August 18, 2008-July 5, 2009 for 46 weeks (post-W 2008), and then from June 7, 2010-July 3, 2011 (post-RG when Federer could not defend his 2009 RG) for 56 weeks, a total of 102 weeks.

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:Well, I'm not seeing anything other than a fan's words of praise for her favourite player coming in here.

Tennis requires a player across the net. Such players help determine fans' viewpoints.

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:Didn't Djokovic say after the Miami 2011 win that for him Nadal is the greatest player ever?

Self-serving logic from the winners. Nadal says the same thing about Federer, yet can beat him. Djokovic says the same thing about Nadal, yet can beat him. Murray says the same thing about Federer, yet can beat him.

Calling your opponent greatest ever, while winning a match against such a player has the effect of glorifying the winner in reflected light.

Looks like Federer is playing Shanghai. http://www.livetennisguide.com/2012/09/25/roger-federer-to-begin-training-ahead-of-shanghai-masters/


Well he may still withdraw at the last moment, we never know.

Is it a good news as a Fed fan? Travelling a long distance to play 1 week and then go back all the way?

My choice for his 2012 scheduling should be Shanghai-> Paris->WTF and skip Basel. But he may still chose to play Basel and skip Paris to have a week Off. Wiser but then it puts his YE #1 to serious trouble and a very poor showing from Djo will keep him at #1 by year end.

Skipping Paris also wiser and help him keep fresh and rested for the all important WTF which he highly cherishes.

Well, lets see. I'll be shocked to see him play all the 4 and don't lose early in either Paris or Basel.

This year's scheduling has been shocking.

raiders_of_the_lost_ark wrote:Looks like Federer is playing Shanghai. http://www.livetennisguide.com/2012/09/25/roger-federer-to-begin-training-ahead-of-shanghai-masters/


Well he may still withdraw at the last moment, we never know.

Is it a good news as a Fed fan?.

As far as I know there are no Federer fans here

As far as I'm selfishly concerned, yes, it's great to have him in Shanghai, I love watching him play.

31-year-old Federer, who has missed the Shanghai Masters in 2009 and 2011 season with knee injuries and coming back to Shanghai along with his wife Mirka Vavrinec twin girls, Myla Rose and Charlene Riva soon.

Are they mixing up with someone else?

I think he will play hopefully. He woudl like to retain his nber one as his Xmas present.

Yes, SHanghai, Paris and London ideally...but I am sure he will play Basel.

Tenez wrote:. He woudl like to retain his nber one as his Xmas present.

.

His or your YOUR Christmas present?

I would say that if he skips anything, it might be Paris, depending on how well he (and Nole) do(es) in Shanghai. As I said before, he will certainly play the latter as it is the only other Rolex master and he skipped MC, plus he already skipped Shanghai last year.

noleisthebest wrote:

Tenez wrote:. He woudl like to retain his nber one as his Xmas present.

.

His or your YOUR Christmas present?

I would be happy certainly if 31yo Federer was finishing the year with his 6th #1 finish and 300 weeks as #1.