Top 10 Oldest No.1 ATP ranked players in tennis

Many tennis players have proven themselves to be the best of all not only in the initial years of their career but also continued their legacy in the very end. They have achieved the most success in their career and yet thrived on being the best even during the end years of their career. SportzPoint.com presents you a list of the top 10 oldest number one ATP ranking player in tennis.

10. Thomas Muster | 28 years 186 days

The former world No. 1 player was one of the world's leading clay court players of the 90s. He reached the top of the table on 12 February 1996 and stayed for six weeks at the top of the ATP Rankings till 8 April 1996. He ended his final stint of No. 1 ranking at the age of 28 years and 186 days.

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9. Pete Sampras | 29 years 91 days

At the age of only 21 years and 243 days, Sampras reached the top of the rankings in April 1993. He held the record for most weeks at No.1 for 286 weeks until surpassed by Federer. He started playing professionally in 1988 and ended with a massive win at the 2002 US Open defeating longtime rival Andre Agassi in the finals.

8. John Newcombe | 30 years 11 days

John Newcombe climbed to the top of the Open Era on 3 June 1974 and continued the streak till 28 July of the same year. He spent 8 weeks at the No. 1 and the last time he was at the top was on 30 years and 66 days.

7. Andy Murray | 30 years 90 days

On 7 November 2016, Andy Murray was crowned the ATP ranked No.1 tennis player at the age of 29 years and 176 days. His legacy continued for 41 weeks and ended on 20 August 2017. He is the winner of 3 Grand Slam titles and reached eleven major finals.

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6. Ivan Lendl | 30 years 150 days

Ivan Lendl stayed at the No. 1 rank for 270 weeks. During a career from 1978 to 1994, he stayed at the top of the table the last time was on 12 August 1990. The former Czech-American player is the winner of 8 Grand Slam titles. Also, he's the first male tennis player who appeared in 19th Grand Slam finals.

5. Jimmy Connors | 30 years and 304 days

Jimmy Connors reached the ATP ranked No. 1 tennis player for the first time in 1974 and spent 268 weeks at the top. During that time, it was a record of 160 consecutive weeks. 20 June 1983 was the final day of being at the No.1. Also, he was the first male player to stay at No.1 for more than 200 weeks.

4. Andre Agassi | 33 years and 100 days

Andre Agassi started playing professional tennis in 1986 and continued till 2006. During these 20 years, he became the first man to win all four Grand Slam singles tournaments on three different surfaces. Before Novak, he was the first man to win four Australian Open singles titles. He reached the world No. 1 ranking for the first time in 1995 and again returned to No. 1 in 1999. Also, he stayed at the top of the rankings for 101 weeks. On April 28, 2003, at the age of 33 years and 100 days, he recaptured the No. 1 ranking. During that time, he was the oldest top-ranked male player, which was later surpassed by Federer in 2018.

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3. Rafael Nadal | 33 years and 244 days

On 18 August 2008, Rafael Nadal was first crowned the No.1 on the ATP Rankings at the age of 22 years and 76 days. Currently, the ATP ranked No. 5 player, has stayed at the top rank of No. 1 in the for 209 weeks. The 35-year-old finished as the year-end No.1 five times and the last time he was at the No.1 position was on 20 January 2020.

2. Roger Federer | 36 years 195 days

Roger Federer is the oldest No.1 ATP-ranked player. At the age of 36 years and 195 days, on 19 February 2018, he became the oldest world No. 1. Also, he clinched the world No.1 position for the most weeks of 310 weeks. This also included a record of 237 consecutive weeks. Lastly, the Swiss player finished as the year-end No. 1 five times.

1. Novak Djokovic | 36 years 321 days

Aged 24 years and 43 days, Novak Djokovic became the ATP ranked world No.1. for the first time on 4 July 2011. His highest streak of being the world No.1 continued for 424th weeks. The 24-time Grand Slam winner is currently the ATP-ranked world No.1 tennis player since 3 February 2020 and broke the record for the oldest No.1 ranked player at the age of 36 years and 321 days old.