Australian tennis player Lleyton Hewitt celebrates winning the third set during his mens singles match against Cypriot opponent Marcos Baghdatis at the Australian Open in Melbourne, early 20 January 2008. Hewitt leads by two sets to one as play continues. AFP PHOTO/Greg WOOD (Photo credit should read GREG WOOD/AFP via Getty Images)
22-time Grand Slam Champion Rafael Nadal is currently ranked No.136 in the ATP singles rankings – he is outside of the top 100 for the first time since 2003
Rafael Nadal has dropped out of the Top 100 of the men’s singles rankings for the first time since 2003. The last time Nadal fell outside the Top 100 was way back in April 2003. Australian tennis icon Lleyton Hewitt was the World No.1 during that phase. According to the latest rankings, Nadal is placed No.136 in the world rankings while Novak Djokovic occupies the top spot.
Hewitt was one of the best players in the men’s circuit during the 2002-2004 phase and it is no surprise that he was ranked No.1 back then. The Australian maestro notably won Wimbledon in 2002, the US Open in 2001 besides several other ATP tour titles. Nadal was just making his mark on the professional circuit and was ranked No.109 while Hewitt occupied the top spot.
Hewitt was first ranked No.1 in 2001 and became the youngest man to be singles world No.1 in the ATP rankings, at the age of 20 years, 8 months until he was surpassed by Carlos Alcaraz recently in 2022. During his illustrious career, Hewitt has won 30 singles titles and 3 doubles titles. He also notably won the Davis Cup twice with Australia in 1999 and 2003.
Rafael Nadal has been out of action with a hip injury since the Australian Open earlier this year. He was expected to make a comeback during the clay-court season but the injury has forced him to skip the clay-court season altogether.
The 22-time Grand Slam Champion hasn’t played a match since his second-round loss at the Australian Open and subsequently withdrew from prestigious events such as the Indian Wells Masters, Miami Open, Barcelona Open, the Madrid Open and most recently the French Open. Nadal is patiently waiting for a full recovery before coming back but it’s not certain when he will eventually be able to play.
The 22-time Grand Slam Champion slipped out of the top 100 of the men’s singles rankings for the first time since April, 2003 because of his absence from multiple events and it just keeps getting worse. Fans are desperate to watch the Spaniard back in action but it is uncertain when the Spaniard will be able to make a full-fledged return. However, it is important that Nadal returns to action only after a complete recovery as a hurried return could very well cause a freak long-term injury and make things more difficult.
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