Swiss Roger Federer and American Serena Williams both dropped out of the world tennis rankings on Monday (July 11th). Absent from the courts for a long time, they lost all of their points. A first since 1997.
The face of tennis changed on Monday, July 11, 2022. The day after and two days after the victories of Novak Djokovic and Elena Rybakina at Wimbledon, the world rankings are turned upside down. Two big names in the game have just come out. From now on, Roger Federer and Serena Williams no longer appear in the list of ranked tennis players and tennis women.
A situation that may seem surprising, as these two characters who have not yet retired have monopolized the tops of the yellow ball. But the rules are clear, and there are no privileges.
Injuries harm both forties
Roger Federer and Serena Williams have simply lost all of their points, respectively in the ATP ranking and in the WTA ranking. Blame it on their prolonged absence.
It has now been a year since the Swiss played tennis at the professional level. Roger Federer, 41 in less than a month, has not appeared on a court since a quarter-final loss at Wimbledon in July 2021. Already absent several times in previous years, the Basel has decided to undergo a new major operation to one knee after his elimination. He has since recovered and admitted earlier this month that he did not think ” it would take that long to get back on the circuit “.
Serena Williams left the 2021 Wimbledon tournament in tears, victim of a leg injury in the first round against Belarusian Aliaksandra Sasnovich. The American, who will turn 41 in September, returned to tennis a year later, in the first round of the 2022 edition of the London tournament, where she tilted against the French Harmony Tan.
At the end of June, Roger Federer was 97th in the world, while Serena Williams was ranked 1,204th in the world. Today, both have no more points and are therefore no longer classified. That hadn’t happened since 1997, when they entered the charts.
Djokovic falls in the standings despite his title
The absence of Federer in the ATP ranking is therefore logical, but the latter does not escape criticism. In effect, Novak Djokovic, who has just won his 7th Wimbledon and his 21st Grand Slam, went from 3rd in the world to… 7th in the world.
In question: his non-presence at the Australian Open in January due to his vaccination status, his defeat in the quarter-finals at Roland-Garros against Rafael Nadal in June, and finally the decision of the organizers of Wimbledon not to award no points for this 2022 edition where Russian and Belarusian players were excluded, in reaction to the war in Ukraine.
The Russian Daniil Medvedev, banned, therefore keeps the chair of world number one, ahead of the German Alexander Zverev, absent in London due to injury. Rafael Nadal moves up to third place, ahead of Stefanos Tsitsipas and Casper Ruud. Carlos Alcaraz is just ahead of Novak Djokovic.