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- Novak Djokovic broke the record for most weeks at No. 1 in the ATP rankings.
- Djokovic reached 311 weeks when the rankings were released on Monday.
- The previous record belonged to Roger Federer, with 310 weeks at No. 1.
- Visit the Insider home page for more stories.
Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic broke Swiss tennis player Roger Federer’s record for most weeks at number one spot by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) when the ranking was released on Monday.
—Novak Djokovic (@DjokerNole) March 8, 2021
Djokovic’s latest top ranking is 311 of his career, while Federer held the previous record of 310. Djokovic has held the highest ATP ranking for 36 consecutive weeks since February 2020, and is in his fifth separate stage. as No. 1.
“It really excites me to walk the path of legends and giants of this sport,” Djokovic said according to the ATP Tour. “Knowing that I have earned my place among them by following my childhood dream is a beautiful confirmation that when you do things out of love and passion, anything is possible.”
Djokovic first achieved a number one spot in July 2011 when he was just 24 years old. At the time, Federer had three weeks at the number one spot under his belt, and since then it has been a back-and-forth race between the two players.
However, at 33 years old, Djokovic has surpassed Federer’s record at a much faster rate than Federer was able to set. Federer, who was ranked No. 6 in the recent rankings, would now face an uphill battle in a bid to regain the record at age 39.
Federer was last ranked number one in June 2018. Since then, Djokovic has been ranked number one in 14 separate weeks, including each of the last five to draw and now surpass Federer’s record.
“Novak’s many accomplishments in tennis are extraordinary,” said ATP President Andrea Gaudenzi. “Among them, this record may be the most impressive. Reaching number 1 is something that many players dream of and very few ever achieve, and having held the top spot longer than anyone is testament to the levels of sustained excellence that they achieve. Novak has redefined himself in our sport. “
Djokovic isn’t done chasing Federer’s records, either. Djokovic currently holds 18 Grand Slam titles, two fewer than the all-time record shared by Federer and Rafael Nadal.
However, Federer does not intend to allow Djokovic to take those records without making some attempt to add them. Federer is set to return to tennis this week at an ATP tournament in Doha, Qatar, after a pair of knee injuries kept him out of the game for the past 13 months.
“I feel like there is still something left,” Federer said of his return at a virtual press conference, according to Jason Gay of The Wall Street Journal. “Retirement was never really in the cards … If the knee keeps bothering me for months and months, then we have to look at it. That’s normal, because when you realize that you can’t play at the highest level anymore, and the knee can’t It lets you do that, then you have to have that conversation. But this is not the time to think about that. “
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