The 19 men to achieve year-end No 1 ranking: Jannik Sinner joins Djokovic, Nadal, Federer
It’s official: Jannik Sinner will finish 2024 as the ATP year-end No 1.
The Italian’s Shanghai Masters quarter-final victory over Daniil Medvedev, coupled with Carlos Alcaraz’s loss to Tomas Machac, means he has an unassailable lead at the top until at least 2025.
Sinner will become the 19th man to finish an ATP season as world No 1, and here we look at the impressive company he is joining.
Ilie Nastase – 1973
Nastase was the first world No 1 in ATP history when the rankings were introduced in August 1973, and was also the first player to be the year-end No 1.
The two-time Grand Slam champion’s reign as world No 1 lasted for 40 weeks, spanning the end of 1973 and into June 1974.
Jimmy Connors – 1974-1978
Only one man has more consecutive year-end world No 1 finishes than Connors, who achieved the milestone for five straight seasons from 1974 to 1978.
In 1975, 1976, and 1978 the US star was the top-ranked player for the whole season, and managed to regain his ranking in 1977 after losing it for just one week.
Bjorn Borg – 1979-1980
One of the greatest players of all time, Borg spent 109 weeks as the year-end world No 1 and was the final No 1 of the 1970s.
The Swedish icon finished 1979 as the best player in the world and managed to fend off the likes of Connors and John McEnroe to finish 1980 atop the rankings.
John McEnroe – 1981-1984
McEnroe missed out on the year-end No 1 ranking in 1980 but would finish the next four seasons at the very top of the ATP Rankings.
He became world No 1 for the first time in 1980 and despite battling for the No 1 ranking with Borg and Connors over the next few years, he always found a way to be top by the end of the season.
Ivan Lendl – 1985-1987, 1989
No one spent more weeks at No 1 in the 1980s than Lendl, and it is no surprise that the Czech great was year-end No 1 an impressive four times.
After several short spells at the top previously, Lendl would spend 157 consecutive weeks as No 1 from September 1985 to September 1988, spanning the year-end No 1 ranking for three straight seasons.
He would then regain the year-end ranking for a final time in 1989, ending the decade as the world’s best player.
Mats Wilander – 1988
After winning the Australian Open, French Open, and the US Open in his most successful season, Wilander rose to world No 1 for the first time in September 1988 – usurping Lendl.
And those three Slam victories were enough for him to finish the year comfortably atop of the rankings, reigning for 20 weeks in total.
Stefan Edberg – 1990-1991
Following on from Wilander and Borg, Edberg became the third Swede to finish a season as the year-end No 1.
Edberg became world No 1 for the first time in August 1990 and his initial 24-week reign was enough to end that season at the top, and then finished 1991 as No 1 after his US Open triumph that summer.
Jim Courier – 1992
Courier kickstarted an era of American dominance in the year-end No 1 stakes thanks to his impressive 1992 seasons.
Australian and French Open triumphs were key in the four-time major winner rising to world No 1 that season, and he knocked Edberg off the top spot again that October to seal the year-end ranking.
Pete Sampras – 1993-1998
Sinner has some way to go if he wants to break ‘Pistol Pete’s’ record of six consecutive finishes as the top-ranked player.
Sampras first rose to world No 1 in 1993 and would finish that year as the top-ranked player, after sealing Wimbledon and US Open triumphs.
He spent the entirety of 1994 and 1997 atop the rankings and though a few players briefly dislodged him in 1995, 1996, and 1998, his all-round consistency was enough to return to No 1 by the end of the year.
Andre Agassi – 1999
After struggling to dislodge Sampras from the top of the rankings for so long, Agassi ended the 1990s as the world No 1 after a stunning 1999 season.
Runs to the French and US Open titles, alongside reaching the Wimbledon final, proved enough for the eight-time Grand Slam champion to finish 1999 as the year-end No 1.
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Gustavo Kuerten – 2000
One of the greatest South American players of all time, Brazilian star Kuerten won the second of his three French Open titles in 2000.
That result, alongside winning the ATP Finals, helped him become the first – and only – South American to achieve the year-end No 1 ranking.
Lleyton Hewitt – 2001-2002
One of the most successful players of the early 2000s, Hewitt is one of just a few players to achieve back-to-back year-end world No 1 finishes.
The Australian won the US Open in 2001 on his way to sealing the year-end milestone for the first time, and then spent the whole of 2002 as world No 1 – aided by his Wimbledon win.
Andy Roddick – 2003
Roddick is the sixth and last American man to achieve the year-end No 1 ranking, doing so in 2003.
He rose to world No 1 weeks after winning the US Open title that season and reigned until February 2004.
Roger Federer – 2004-2007, 2009
The dominant force of the 2000s, Federer finished year-end No 1 on five occasions – including four seasons in a row.
After rising to world No 1 in February 2004, the Swiss reigned for 237 consecutive weeks and did not lose the No 1 ranking until 2008.
Federer then won two Slams and reached a further two finals in 2009, finishing year-end No 1 for the first and final time.
Rafael Nadal – 2008, 2010, 2013, 2017, 2019
Nadal matches great rival Federer with five finishes as the year-end No 1, though all of the retiring great’s finishes are spread out.
The Spaniard’s historic 2008 season saw him become world No 1 and year-end No 1 for the first time, and he regained the year-end ranking in 2010.
Duelling with Federer and Djokovic, Nadal would again finish in 2013 and 2017 atop the rankings, before ending the decade as year-end No 1 in 2019.
Novak Djokovic – 2011-2012, 2014-2015, 2018, 2020-2021, 2023
Arguably the greatest male player in the history of the sport, no one can match Djokovic’s eight separate year-end No 1 finishes.
The Serbian became No 1 for the first time in 2011 and was year-end No 1 that season and in 2012, before also finishing 2014 and 2015 at the top.
Djokovic returned to year-end No 1 after his resurgent 2018 season and then finished 2020 and 2021 atop the rankings, before a final finish in 2023.
Andy Murray – 2016
Murray capped off arguably the greatest season of his career by reaching world No 1 for the very first time.
A second Wimbledon title helped him rise to No 1 that Autumn, and ATP Finals victory over Djokovic clinched the year-end ranking.
Carlos Alcaraz – 2022
Alcaraz was ranked outside the top 30 at the start of 2022 but a staggering rise up the rankings saw him end the year at the very top of the game.
The Spaniard rose to world No 1 after winning his first Grand Slam title at the US Open and would reign until January the following year.
Jannik Sinner – 2024
Sinner is not only the first Italian singles player – male or female – to be ranked world No 1; he is now also the nation’s first year-end No 1.
His rise to the top has been capped off by his Australian and US Open triumphs, and he has so far spent 18 weeks as No 1 – though that number is guaranteed to rise in the coming months.
