Novak Djokovic secured his seventh consecutive year-end world No. 1 ranking Thursday, surpassing Pete Sampras for the most of any player on the ATP Tour.
The Serb followed up his Australian Open victory by winning his third Indian Wells final of the year in the desert on Sunday, defeating Roger Federer for his seventh trophy in Los Angeles in the process.
And following on from his 17th consecutive quarterfinal appearance, Djokovic’s win at Indian Wells boosted his ranking to No. 1 in world.
The Spaniard Roger Federer moved up one spot to No. 2 while fellow three-time major winner Stan Wawrinka stayed at No. 3 after his win at the French Open.
Djokovic and Federer have won five of the past seven Grand Slams between them, and added each other’s trophies at the Australian Open, for which Djokovic won his fourth Grand Slam in a row while Federer won the sixth consecutive major he had played in over a 10-year span.
Federer became the oldest man to reach the semifinals at the French Open, where he fell to Wawrinka 7-6 (6), 7-6 (4).
After his win in Paris, Wawrinka celebrated with the thumbs-up gesture from the court, earning his first Grand Slam title in nearly five years.
It was just the first Grand Slam title of the year for Wawrinka, who also was a runner-up at the Australian Open in January, losing to Djokovic in the final.
Djokovic moved back up to No. 1 for the first time since September of 2015 before a quarterfinal loss at the Australian Open to Andy Murray. After his second straight Grand Slam title, he finished the year in solid form by winning nine straight matches to make Indian Wells his most recent final.
The previous seven No. 1s were accomplished on the men’s side, and Djokovic moved into the position in the same way as the man he overtook, Sampras.
A right wrist injury forced Djokovic to withdraw from the French Open in 2016 and he then missed Wimbledon and the Olympics after surgery.
Djokovic also won the Wimbledon title in 2012 and 2015, the U.S. Open in 2015 and the Australian Open in 2014. He will also be in the field for the French Open, where he has won three titles.
Tennis Channel is the U.S. broadcast partner for the ATP World Tour.
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