#360stats: History of ATP World Finals - Novak joining greats

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Mail
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Can Novak Djokovic be the best of the rest for a fifth time?

    The Barclays World Tour Finals, the ATP World Tour’s marquee event kicks off at the iconic O2 Arena in London on Sunday. The event, which features the Top 8 Singles Players and Doubles Teams in the Calendar ATP rankings, is played out in a round-robin format to round off the season.

    World No.1 Novak Djokovic will headline the 2015 edition, and the Serb has looked invincible this season. Such is his dominance Djokovic comes into this event on the back of a 22-match unbeaten streak. The 3-time defending champion has been drawn in the same group as nemesis Roger Federer, the 6-time former champ. The legendary duo have combined to win 10 of the last 12 events (since 2003).

    The 2015 event promises to be a scintillating end to the ATP season. To get ourselves into the thick of things, Sport360 details the facts, figures and stats from this historic tournament with a rich history.

    • It all started in 1970 in Tokyo, when it was called the Masters Grand Prix. The event, which featured only the round-robin format, was won by American Stan Smith with Tennis Legend Rod “Rocket” Laver finishing as the runner-up.
    • The host cities of this spectacle:

    • The iconic “Madison Square Garden” in New York hosted the event from 1977 to 1989, giving us some of the best memories – the famous dead net-cord on match point in the final set tiebreak in the 1988 final; giving Boris Becker the title over Ivan Lendl.

    • The event has been staged at the O2 Arena in London from 2009 onwards and is expected to run there until 2018.
    • It is considered as the biggest and the most coveted indoor event on the tennis calendar (Played Outdoors – 1974 Melbourne & 2003-2004 Houston).
    • The event has had different names: 1970-1989 – Masters Grand Prix, 1990-1999 – ATP Tour World Championships, 2000-2008 – Tennis Masters Cup, 2009-Present – ATP World Tour Finals.

    The Best of the Best

    14 – By Qualifying for the 2015 event, Federer set the record for the most appearances at the World Tour Finals. He also holds the record for the consecutive appearances (14) at the event. Andre Agassi made 13 visits to the Tour Finals followed by Lendl (12).

    14 – Consecutive match wins for Novak (active), Lendl and Federer. Expect Djokovic to improve on that number.

    6 – Titles won by Federer, the record at the World Tour Finals. He won twice in Houston (2003-04), twice in Shanghai (2006-07) and twice in London (2010-2011). Lendl and Pete Sampras are second to Federer with 5 titles each.

    9 – Finals reached by Federer and Lendl, the all-time record. Becker reached the final on 8 occasions, while Lendl also holds the record for the most consecutive finals reached – 9 (1980-88).

    12 – Semi-final appearances by Federer and Lendl. The latter made the SF in each his 12 appearances at the championships whereas Federer has missed the SF just once (2008, lost in the RR stage).

    3 – Consecutive titles won by Ilie Năstase (1971-73), Lendl (1985-87) and Djokovic (2012-14). World No.1 and defending champion Djokovic will be bidding to become the first man to win an unprecedented 4th title in a row at the O2.

    4 – Players seeded lower than No.2 to win the championship in the 21st Century.

    48 – Match wins (counting) for Swiss legend Federer, the most at the World Tour Finals. He is the only man to win 40+ matches at the event. Lendl (39) and Becker (36) are next in line behind Federer.

    88% – Winning percentage for Romanian great Năstase (22-3), the best in the tournament history (for minimum 20+ match wins). Federer (48-11) has managed an 81% winning percentage.

    76% – Games won (51-16) by Djokovic at the 2014 World Tour Finals, the best record in the event’s history.

    92% – Winning percentage for Năstase (12-1) in decisive-set matches. Djokovic has won 83% of his decisive-set matches (10-2).

    0 sets lost – by Lendl (1982, 85-86) and McEnroe (1983) in winning the championship, the only men to achieve this feat.

    The undefeated champions list –

    0 – No player in the history of the singles tournament has won the title after losing more than one round-robin match.

    $2.28 million – Prize money on offer to the undefeated singles champion at the 2015 event.

    $13.17 million – Prize money won by Federer at the World Tour Finals, the most in history.

    Recommended