Novak Djokovic and Ashleigh Barty strengthen grip on World No. 1 ranking after Wimbledon triumphs
Novak Djokovic and Ashleigh Barty have tightened their grip over the World No. 1 ranking after winning the singles titles at Wimbledon over the weekend.
On Sunday, Djokovic defeated Italy's Matteo Berrettini 6-7(4), 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 to join Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal on 20 Grand Slam titles.
With a sixth Wimbledon singles title under his belt, Djokovic retained the top spot in men's tennis for yet another week. It marks a record-extending 329th week atop the world rankings for Djokovic.
Despite having won the first three Majors of the season, Djokovic has only a 1,743 point lead over second-ranked Daniil Medvedev. That is a result of the adjusted ranking system in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which sees the Russian retain a rich haul of points from his incredible 2019 hardcourt campaign.
If Medvedev is unable to defend those points in the coming weeks, Djokovic could find himself much further ahead of the chasing pack.
It would also place Djokovic in prime position to end the year at No. 1 for a record-breaking seventh time.
Berrettini, who reached his first Grand Slam singles final at Wimbledon, moved up one spot to equal his career-best ranking of No. 8, swapping places with 39-year-old Roger Federer.
Elsewhere in the top 10, Alexander Zverev climbed one spot to No. 5, swapping positions with US Open champion Dominic Thiem, who missed Wimbledon due to injury.
Canada's Denis Shapovalov, who reached his first Major semi-final, moved up two positions to No. 10, equaling his career-best in the process. Also reaching new heights were Wimbledon semi-finalist Hubert Hurkacz, up seven positions to No. 11; and Felix Auger-Aliassime, up four spots to No. 15.
Ashleigh Barty extends lead over Naomi Osaka in the WTA rankings
Australia's Ashleigh Barty also continued her reign atop the women's rankings following her 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-3 win over Karolina Pliskova on Saturday.
This is Barty's 84th week as World No. 1, marking the ninth longest reign in WTA history. With an almost 2,300-point lead over second-placed Naomi Osaka, who missed Wimbledon, Barty could soon leapfrog Lindsay Davenport (98 weeks) on the list of players with the most weeks at World No. 1.
Pliskova, a former World No. 1 who finished as runner-up at a Grand Slam for the second time in her career, climbed six positions to No. 7, returning to the top 10 following a brief exit.
Meanwhile, there was plenty of movement in the top 10. Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka, who reached her first Grand Slam semi-final this past fortnight, rose one spot to a new career-high of No. 3, while American Sofia Kenin moved up two positions to No. 4.
Former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu climbed two spots to No. 5 while 2020 French Open champion Iga Swiatek moved up one position to No. 8.
Simona Halep, who was forced to abandon her Wimbledon title defense due to injury, dropped from No. 3 to No. 9. Serena Williams also witnessed a big fall, moving from No. 8 to No. 16, following her first-round withdrawal from the Major.
Spain's Garbine Muguruza climbed two spots to return to the top 10 while French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova moved up four positions to reach a new career-high of No. 13.