Serbia’s Novak Djokovic returned to the top of the ATP Rankings for a fifth stint after capturing a record-extending eighth Australian Open title.
It will be his 276th week at the top, replacing Spain’s Rafael Nadal, who had overtaken him at No. 1 on November 4 last year.
Djokovic, who has now been World No. 1 during nine of the past 10 seasons (2011-16, 2018-20), will break Roger Federer’s record for most weeks at No. 1 (310 weeks) if he stays at the top until 5 October.
“That’s one of the two biggest goals, for sure. I mean, there is no secret in that,” said Djokovic, after winning in Melbourne.
Andrea Gaudenzi, ATP Chairman, said: “Novak has had a faultless start to the season, leading Serbia to victory at the ATP Cup and capturing a record eighth Australian Open crown. He has proven yet again that he is the man to beat and his record in Australia is second to none. Many congratulations to Novak and his team on such impressive start to the year and his deserved return to World No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Rankings.”
Djokovic first ascended to No. 1 in the FedEx ATP Rankings aged 24 on July 4, 2011 for a total of 53 weeks until July 8, 2012.
The Serbian returned to top spot on three further occasions between November 5, 2012 and October 6, 2013 (48 weeks), from July 7, 2014 to November 6, 2016 (122 weeks) and from November 5, 2018 to November 3, 2019 (52 weeks).
The 32-year-old Djokovic is unbeaten in 2020 with a perfect 13-0 match record, which includes helping Team Serbia clinch the inaugural ATP Cup trophy.
His Australian Open win takes Djokovic’s Grand Slam championship tally to 17 (third in the all-time list behind Federer on 20 and Nadal on 19) and gives him a strong lead in the year-to-date ATP Race To London.
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