Rafael Nadal to return to number one after Roger Federer's Cincinnati withdrawal
Last updated on .From the section Tennis

Rafael Nadal will be the new world number one from next Monday after Roger Federer withdrew from the Cincinnati Masters with a back injury.
The Swiss 19-time Grand Slam winner was the only player who could have denied Spain's Nadal taking the top spot in the rankings from Andy Murray.
Federer was injured in Sunday's Rogers Cup final defeat by Alexander Zverev.
Briton Murray pulled out of Cincinnati last week as he continues to recover from a hip problem.
Reigning French Open champion Nadal returns to the top of the rankings for the first time since July 2014.
The 31-year-old went out of the Rogers Cup in the last 16 against wildcard Denis Shapovalov.
Federer went all the way to the final before losing to 20-year-old German Zverev in Montreal - the Swiss' first tournament since winning Wimbledon for the eighth time in July.
"I am very sorry to pull out," said the world number three. "Cincinnati has some of the best fans in the world and I am sorry I will miss them.
"Unfortunately, I tweaked my back in Montreal and I need to rest this week."
The Cincinnati Masters leads up to the the US Open, the final Grand Slam of the year, which begins on 28 August.
Federer, 36, joins fellow top 10 players Murray, Kei Nishikori and Marin Cilic in withdrawing, while 2016 US Open winner Stan Wawrinka and 12-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic will miss the rest of the season.
Alerts, Live Guide & MySport |
---|
Alerts: Tennis news sent to your phone |
My Sport: Sign up to follow tennis news |
Comments
Join the conversation
The ranking system is the same for every player, so whoever gets to No1 at anytime deserves it.
But I'm sure he's not really that interested in the no 1 label - what counts in his legacy are the slams
It is a fact he lost last week but you need to look at more facts stretching back about 12 months and then compare that to every other players facts to see who has performed best in that period. Factually Nadal is the best in that period and he is now Number 1.
Wimbledon = 2,000 points
2 X Masters titles = 2,000 points - and not forgetting the tour finals, where he beat all-comers including Djoko and Stan = 1,500 points. That's 5,500 points from 'major' events, not minor ones!
Shame to see so many top players not competing in Cincinnati, but it does give some of the next generation a big opportunity.
Congrats to Rafa on regaining the top spot. Well deserved from his performances, and at the very least the greatest clay player of all time.
Interestingly Federer's no show keeps Murray ranked 2nd (Fed could have lost 1st round and still overtaken Murray); I don't think either will play before the US open so this gives Murray a better seeding; wonder if this will prove critical?
Who'd have thought.