Unlike recent years, the world No.1 ranking is at stake for both the men and women at this year’s Wimbledon Championships. Andy Murray currently heads the men’s tour and Angelique Kerber tops the women, but a early exit in the tournament will spark an end to their reign.
Murray’s fight
A total of four players are battling for the top spot on the ATP Tour with three of them already having experience of being world No.1. Top seed Murray needs to reach the final at Wimbledon to secure his place at the top regardless of how his rivals fair in the tournament. If everything goes according to seeds and the Brit faces Rafael Nadal in the semi-final, the winner of that match would become world No.1.
Nadal could also become world No.1 if Murray exits the tournament two rounds before him. For example, if Murray goes out in round three, he will have 7480 points. Meanwhile Nadal will have 7645 points if he reached the quarterfinals. Nadal last reached the last eight at SW19 in 2011.
Stan Wawrinka’s No.1 bid involves a series of big wins. If the Swiss secured the title, it will elevate him to the top spot. However, to do so, he must defeat Murray in the quarter-finals followed by Nadal. Then, if he faces Novak Djokovic in the final, the winner will become world No.1.
Finally, Djokovic’s only chance will occur if both Murray and Nadal crash out of the tournament before the semifinals. If that was to happen, the Serbian would then have to win the title.
Possible scenarios
| Winner | Final | SF | QF | R16 | R32 | R64 | R128 | |
| Player | 2000 | 1200 | 720 | 360 | 180 | 90 | 45 | 10 |
| Murray, Andy GBR | 9390 | 8590 | 8110 | 7750 | 7570 | 7480 | 7435 | 7400 |
| Nadal, Rafael ESP | 9285 | 8485 | 8005 | 7645 | 7465 | 7375 | 7330 | 7295 |
| Wawrinka, Stan SUI | 8130 | 7330 | 6850 | 6490 | 6310 | 6220 | 6175 | 6140 |
| Djokovic, Novak SRB | 7965 | 7165 | 6685 | 6325 | 6145 | 6055 | 6010 | 5975 |
source: atpworldtour.com
How the four have performed at Wimbledon
Andy Murray – Two-time champion (2013 and 2016). Career win-loss record of 53-9 (85% winning rate)
Rafael Nadal – Two-time champion (2008 and 2010). Career win-loss of 40-9 (82% winning rate).
Stan Wawrinka – Two-time quarter-finalist (2014 and 2015). Career win-loss of 18-12 (60% winning rate).
Novak Djokovic – Three-time champion (2011, 2014 and 2015). Career win-loss of 54-9 (86% winning rate).
The Women’s mission
Similar to the French Open, Kerber finds herself in a three-way race with Simona Halep and Karolina Pliskova. The 2016 Wimbledon finalist will have the highest amount of points to defend, compared to the others, who suffered early exits in 2016.
Kerber’s No.1 reign depends on the outcome of her rivals. If she was to win the title, the German will have to hope the Pliskova will not go beyond the semifinals of the tournament. Should Kerber settle for runner-up, she needs both Pliskova to not go beyond the fourth round and Halep to be stopped before the semifinals.
It is less complicated for Halep. If she wins the title, the position is hers for the taking. The Romanian was in the same scenario at the French Open, but fell at the final hurdle to Jelena Ostapenko. In order to seal No.1 she needs to progress to at least the semifinals and rely on the results of her rivals.
After winning Eastbourne, Karolina Pliskova finds herself on the verge of the top spot. If all three players go out in the same round, Pliskova would become world No.1.
A tweet to explain it all
Karolina Pliskova is now 545pts over Halep, 1050pts over Kerber.
One of them will be the next WTA n.1 after Wimbledon.
All the combinations: pic.twitter.com/pmupHbiaqQ— Diego Barbiani (@Diego_Barbiani) 1 July 2017
How they have performed at Wimbledon
Angelique Kerber – 2016 finalist. Career win-loss of 20-9 (69% winning rate).
Simona Halep – 2014 semifinalist. Career win-loss of 11-6 (65% winning rate)
Karolina Pliskova – reached the second round on four occasions (2013-2016). Career win-loss of 4-5 (44% winning rate)
