Nadal's 12th French Open title strengthens his position in his bid to end the year as No. 1 for the fifth time, after 2008, 2010, 2013, and 2017.
Rafael Nadal
Spanish star Rafael Nadal's record-extending 12th French Open title has put him on top of the Race to London, an annual ranking that helps the top eight players qualify for the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) finals.
After taking part in nine tournaments this year, Nadal has collected 5,505 points in the ATP Race to London, 780 points more than Djokovic who was eliminated by Austria's Dominic Thiem after a five-set semi-final match in Paris, reports Efe news.
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Nadal's 12th French Open title strengthens his position in his bid to end the year as No. 1 for the fifth time, after 2008, 2010, 2013, and 2017.
After his three-hour-and-one-minute battle in Paris 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1, the 33-year-old Nadal broke a tie with Australia's Margaret Court, who won the Australian Open 11 times between 1960 and 1973.
The 18-time Grand Slam champion also closed the gap with Federer -- the most successful male player in Grand Slam history with 20 titles -- as the second-most decorated player in the majors.
In the post-match interview, after winning the French Open 2019, an emotional Rafael Nadal said that he felt bad for his opponent Dominic Thiem, "I want to say congratulations to Dominic. I feel sorry as he deserves to win it as well. But he has every chance in the future. He has unbelievable talent and I want to encourage him," said Nadal. "It's a dream to win again, an incredible moment. When I first played here in 2005, I never thought I'd still be playing in 2019. It's very special for me."
Meanwhile, Djokovic continued to lead the men's ATP world singles rankings, with Nadal in second place.
Federer, who was knocked out by Nadal in the semi-finals, remained in the third spot, ahead of Thiem and Germany's Alexander Zverev.
Karen Khachanov of Russia climbed two positions to the ninth, while Italy's Fabio Fognini rose to 10th.
The current top-10 ATP rankings and point scores are as follows:
1. Novak Djokovic (Serbia) 12,715 points
2. Rafael Nadal (Spain) 7,945
3. Roger Federer (Switzerland) 6,670
4. Dominic Thiem (Austria) 4,685
5. Alexander Zverev (Germany) 4,360
6. Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece) 4,215
7. Kei Nishikori (Japan) 4,040
8. Kevin Anderson (South Africa) 3,565
9. Karen Khachanov (Russia) 2,980
10. Fabio Fognini (Italy) 2,785.
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