40 stats to commemorate Roger Federer's 40th birthday
8 August marks a special day for tennis fans around the world, as that is when Roger Federer celebrates his birthday. This year, the date carries even more significance as Federer is turning 40.
The 20-time Slam champion has competed on the tour for more than two decades, and his fans will certainly hope he has a little more left in the tank. In honor of Federer's 40th birthday, let's sit back and celebrate 40 incredible milestones from his decorated career.
1 - The highest ranking Roger Federer has achieved
The Swiss reached the No. 1 spot for the first time on February 2, 2004. That marked the beginning of a record-breaking 237-week stint at the top. In total, Federer occupied the No. 1 spot for 310 weeks, a record that was broken by Novak Djokovic in March 2021.
2 - Spot on the list of men's singles titles
When Federer won the Swiss Indoors in Basel two years ago, it marked the 103rd singles title of his career. The Swiss is second only to Jimmy Connors, who ended his career with 109 singles titles.
3 - Number of Hopman Cup victories
The Hopman Cup used to be one of the most popular events on the tennis calendar due to its mixed-format despite the fact that there were no ranking points or prize money cheques. The event was last held in 2019, but could return to the calendar next year.
Federer has been part of Switzerland's winning team on three occasions. He first won the title in 2001 with fellow great Martina Hingis, and then in 2018 and 2019 with Belinda Bencic.
4 - Number of children
Roger and wife Mirka have four kids -- two sets of twins(Federer's sister also has a set of twins).
Girls Myla Rose and Charlene Riva were born in 2009 while boys Lenny and Leo joined the Federer clan in 2014.
5 - Number of US Open titles
If Federer does play in New York at the end of this month, he will be hoping to add to his five US Open titles.
His five triumphs at Flushing Meadows are the joint-most by any male player in the Open Era (Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras have also won five titles in New York).
Federer's titles came in consecutive years -- 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 -- which is also a record in itself.
6 - Number of Australian Open titles
Federer has won the Australian Open on six occasions (2004, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2017, 2018). He sits level with Roy Emerson and behind only Novak Djokovic, who has won the event nine times.
7 - Number of 20+ match winning streaks
One of the lesser-known facts about Federer is that he is only behind Novak Djokovic on the Open Era list for most winning streaks of 20 matches or more. Federer has seven such streaks while Djokovic has eight.
8 - Number of Wimbledon titles
Federer's most successful Grand Slam is Wimbledon, where he has won the singles title eight times (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2017). That's a record when it comes to male players.
9 - Number of finals at Indian Wells
Federer has reached the final of the Indian Wells Masters on a record nine occasions. He came away with wins in five of those - a record he shares with Djokovic. The Swiss will have a chance to make it to a tenth final if he competes in this year's edition which will be held in October.
10 - Number of consecutive Grand Slam finals
Federer reached the final of 10 consecutive Grand Slam events from 2005 Wimbledon to 2007 US Open. That's a record in men's tennis which is only bested by Steffi Graf, who reached 13 consecutive finals from the 1987 French Open to the 1990 French Open.
11 - Number of hardcourt Grand Slam titles
Federer's six Australian Opens and five US Open titles put him in second position on the list of Grand Slam titles won on hardcourts. The leader is Djokovic, who has won nine Australian Opens and three US Opens.
12 - Number of Wimbledon singles finals
Federer not only holds the record for most Wimbledon singles titles, but also for the highest number of singles finals at the All England Club (12). His most recent appearance in a Major final came in 2019 Wimbledon, where he suffered a heartbreaking defeat to Djokovic after squandering two championship points.
13 - Number of times he has won the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award
Federer is not only loved by fans all over the world but he is also respected by his fellow peers. The 13 times he has been voted the winner of the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award bear testament to that.
14 - Number of consecutive years in the top 10
Federer spent an incredible 14 consecutive years in the world's top 10 from 2002 to 2016. His streak only came to an end when he took a long break in 2016 due to injury.
15 - Number of years ended inside the top 3
Federer was ranked inside the top 3 of the world rankings at the end of the season on a whopping 15 occasions - from 2003 to 2012, 2014 to 2015, and 2017 to 2019.
16 - The age at which Federer made his ATP debut
Federer made his debut at the ATP event in Gstaad in 1998. The Swiss was ranked No. 702 at the time and went down to 88th ranked Lucas Arnold Ker 6-4, 6-4 in the first round.
17 - Number of appearances at the ATP Finals
Federer has played in the season-ending ATP Finals on 17 occasions. The Swiss has reached the finals 10 times, winning on six occasions.
18 - Number of times Federer has won the ATP Fans' Favourite Award
Has there ever been a more popular player than Federer in the history of tennis? The Swiss has won the ATP Fans' Favorite Award a record 18 consecutive times from 2003 to 2020.
19 - Number of grasscourt titles
Federer holds the record for most grasscourt singles titles among male players. In addition to his eight Wimbledon titles, Federer has also won the ATP event in Halle 10 times and the tournament in Stuttgart once.
20 - Number of Grand Slam titles
Federer was the first male player to win 20 Grand Slam singles titles. Since then, he has been joined by Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
With all three players still competing, the race for the all-time Slam record is going to captivate tennis fans for a few more years.
21 - The age at which Federer won his first Grand Slam title
Federer won his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2003 when he was 21 years old. The Swiss defeated Mark Philippoussis in the final to lift the first of his 20 Major titles.
22 - Most appearances at a single Grand Slam event
When Federer stepped out on court for his first-round match at Wimbledon this year, it marked his 22nd appearance at the All England Club. In the process, he took sole ownership of the record for most participations in a single Major event, breaking a tie with Feliciano Lopez, who has played in the French Open 21 times.
23 - Number of consecutive Grand Slam semifinal appearances
Another record that Federer holds is for the highest number of consecutive Grand Slam semi-final appearances (23). His streak began at Wimbledon in 2004 and ended only at the French Open in 2010.
24 - Number of ATP 500 titles
Federer has won 24 ATP 500 titles in his career. That's a record for most titles in this category on the ATP Tour.
25 - Number of ATP 250 titles
Federer has won 25 ATP 250 titles in his career, one short of the record held by Austria's Thomas Muster.
26 - Number of indoor titles
Federer has won a whopping 26 indoor titles, the most among active players. The second best is Andy Murray with 15 titles.
27 - Longest Grand Slam match-winning streak
There have been two occasions in which Federer has won 27 consecutive Grand Slam matches. Both times, his streak was ended by Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros (2006 and 2007).
28 - Number of ATP Masters 1000 titles
Federer has won 28 Masters 1000 titles. His rivals Djokovic and Nadal lead the way in this stat with 36 each.
29 - Number of consecutive victories in Halle
Federer once embarked on a 29-match winning streak at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle. The Swiss won titles in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2008 and reached the final in 2010, where he was beaten by Lelyton Hewitt. He did not compete in 2007 and 2009.
30 - Record for most number of games in a deciding set in a Grand Slam final
When Federer and Andy Roddick went toe-to-toe in the 2009 Wimbledon final, they set the record for most number of games played in the deciding set of a Grand Slam final - 30. The Swiss eventually won the set 16-14.
31 - Number of Grand Slam finals
No player in men's tennis has reached more Grand Slam finals than Federer. His 31 Major finals include streaks of 10 and 8 - which are the two longest in men's tennis.
32 - His winning streak on Swiss soil
Federer won 32 consecutive matches on home soil before being defeated by Spain's Pablo Andujar in the second round of the Geneva Open this year.
33 - Number of five-set wins
Federer has won 33 of the 56 five-set matches that he has played in his career. That gives him a 58.9% win-loss percentage in matches that have gone the distance.
34 - 11,478 aces in his career
Federer sits third on the all-time ace leaderboard behind Ivo Karlovic and John Isner. What does that have to do with 34? Absolutely nothing, but we just felt we had to plug this stat somewhere.
35 - The age at which he became the oldest Wimbledon champion in the Open Era
When Federer defeated Marin Cilic in the Wimbledon final in 2017, he became the oldest champion at the All England Club in the Open Era at 35 years and 342 days.
36 - Oldest player to become World No. 1
When Federer capped an incredible 12 months by winning the Rotterdam title in February 2018, he returned to the summit of the world rankings. At 36 years and 195 days, he became the oldest World No. 1 in ATP history by a fair margin (more than three years).
37 - Age at which he won his 1,200th match
Federer was 37 years and seven months old when he won his 1,200th match by beating Kevin Anderson at the 2019 Miami Open.
38 - Age at which Federer topped Forbes' list of highest-earning athletes
Federer was named Forbes' highest earning athlete in 2020, having earned more than $106 million during the 12-month period in consideration. It was the first time Federer topped the Forbes list.
39 - Number of ATP Tour Awards
Federer has won an incredible 39 ATP Tour Awards: ATP Tour No. 1 (2004-07, 2009), Arthur Ashe Humanitarian of Year (2006, 2013), Comeback Player of the Year (2017), Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship (2004-09, 2011-17) and Fans' Favourite (2003-20).
40 - Consecutive match wins at two tournaments
Federer has won 40 consecutive matches in two tournaments - the US Open and Wimbledon.