Murray now has to fight Djokovic, Wawrinka and Del Potro to stay as No 1 in tennis

As if the climb was not hard, the new men's top-ranked player has to find a way to stay there, writes Ahmed Rizvi.

Andy Murray had a great 2016, but 2017 could provide a whole new set of challenges for the world No 1. Dan Mullan / Getty Images

Tennis, as Andy Murray said in Paris last week, is "just a strange sport".

“You had Novak [Djokovic] losing yesterday to a guy [Marin Cilic] against whom he’d won 14 times in a row,” Murray added. “And then John [Isner] beating Cilic, who he’d lost six in a row against. Stuff can turn around quick.”

And who should know that better than Murray?

He was 8,035 points behind Djokovic in the rankings after losing the French Open final to the Serb in June.

Now, five months and 22 incredible weeks later, the Scot is the new No 1 with a 405-point lead over Djokovic.

Strange, is it not?

Murray, himself, did not believe he could climb to No1 in 2016. His most optimistic assessment was early 2017.

But here he is, the new No 1, after spending 76 weeks at second-ranked player in the world.

He first made it to No 2 on August 16, 2009.

Seven years later, at 29 years, five months and 23 days, he is the oldest first-time top-ranked player since John Newcombe (30 years, 11 days, on 3 June, 1974) and the 26th man to reach the top of the rankings. “The fact it came this late in his playing career shows how determined and focused he is,” Martina Navratilova told BBC.

She saluted the Scot’s “amazement accomplishment”, given the era he has been part of, where three people – Roger Federer (302 weeks), Rafael Nadal (141 weeks) and Djokovic (223 weeks) – have dominated the top ranking over the past 13 years, winning 43 grand slam titles between them.

In the 10 years before Federer made his first appearance at the top of the rankings in February, 2004, as many as 12 men had shared the position.

So when Navratilova says “it’s some pretty rarefied air to get into as it’s been a pretty exclusive club for some time”, you better believe her.

Yes, Djokovic’s inexplicable decline has helped Murray’s rise. He is 2-13 (10-24 overall) against the Serb in their past 15 duels.

Injury woes to Federer and Nadal could have helped as well. Murray is 0-5 (11-14 overall) against Federer since 2014, and 2-4 (7-17 overall) against Nadal during that period.

Critics might also want to point out Murray has faced only two top-10 players on the court in the post-Olympic part of the season. He beat Milos Raonic in Cincinnati and lost to Kei Nishikori at the US Open.

But lest they forget, he played 13 matches against top 10 players in the earlier part of the season (until Wimbledon) and was 9-4 in those matches, with three of the losses coming against Djokovic.

So yes, destiny has probably favoured him in recent times, but he has also earned it.

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He has been the most consistent player on the planet over the past 12 months.

And then, nobody has had to work harder in history to reach the top of the rankings.

But now that he is there, can he dominate the rankings like Djokovic, Federer and Nadal did over the past 13 years?

Tim Henman would like to think so. “Now he’s reached No 1, I don’t think for any moment in time he’s going to take his foot off the gas,” the former top-ranked British player told BBC.

“If Andy stays fit and healthy, I can see him being the dominant force going forward.”

Murray will certainly not take his foot off the gas. He never does. But can he really be the dominant force once Djokovic rediscovers his game, or once Federer and Nadal return healed from their injuries?

Agreed, the last two are probably past their peak playing form, but the incredible Stan Wawrinka seems to be getting better with age.

He has won a grand slam title in each of the past three seasons and has as many major trophies as Murray. Head to head, the Swiss is 3-1 against the Scot since 2013 (7-9 overall).

Then there is Juan Martin del Potro as well. The Argentine is gradually making his way back to the top, putting his injury woes behind and, if his victories over Wawrinka (Wimbledon), Nadal (Rio Olympics) and Murray (Davis Cup) are any indication, he could be the player to watch in 2017.

Players such as Marin Cilic and Nick Kyrgios could also have a say in how solid, or fragile, Murray’s reign will be. Cilic defeated both Djokovic and Murray in 2016 and lost a close match to Federer at Wimbledon.

With all these forces arrayed against him, can Murray be as dominant as the past three top-ranked players?

Only time will tell. He will definitely fight, but, it seems the era of domineering No 1s could be coming to an end.

Tennis last week

Who is hot? John Isner The big-serving American has not had a great season, with only one other final (Atlanta) and third-round exits from Wimbledon and the US Open to show for. But he has managed to finish on a high, reaching the summit clash at the Paris Masters to climb back into the top 20.

Who is not? Novak Djokovic Winner of the Paris Masters for the past three years, Djokovic not only failed to defend his title but also lost his No 1 ranking following the straight-sets loss to Marin Cilic in the quarter-finals. He had defeated Cilic in each of their 14 previous matches.

Men's tour Andy Murray, the first British player to reach the top of the ATP rankings, celebrated his ascension with a thrilling 6-3, 6-7, 6-4 win over John Isner in the final of the Paris Masters. This was Murray's 12th final of 2016 and his eighth crown of the year. The unseeded pair of Henri Kontinen and John Peers took the doubles crown, defeating top-seeded Frenchmen Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut 6-4, 3-6, 10-6 in the final.

ATP rankings

1 – A Murray (11,185)

2 – N Djokovic (10,780)

3 – S Wawrinka (5,115)

4 – M Raonic (5,050)

5 – K Nishikori (4,705)

6 – G Monfils (3,625)

7 – M Cilic (3,450)

8 – R Nadal (3,300)

9 – D Thiem (3,215)

10 – T Berdych (3,060)

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