Ranks are significant in any sport, whether it concerns which soccer team is at the top, which football team will win the Super Bowl, or to celebrate the accomplishments of a tennis player.  Because tennis is such a solitary sport, ranks mean almost everything to a tennis player.  Their rank defines who they are on the court and how much of a threat they can be.  Every tennis player dreams of being in the same league as players like Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Boris Becker, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and more recently, Rafael Nadal.

 Rafael Nadal, a professional Spanish tennis player, recently regained his number one rank, which he last held in 2008, a very iconic year as it was the first year he had won Wimbledon.  He had played against professional Swiss player, Roger Federer, who is known by many as the king of tennis and Wimbledon.

 As tennis fans were well aware, Nadal had been out of the tennis scene for seven months due to a knee injury that continues to plague him.  It was quite clear to everyone that Nadal meant to make up for his absence, especially when he proved everyone who wrote his absence off as the start of his decline as an athlete.  Some fans, however, were not as quick to assume what would happen to Nadal’s career.

 “Usually professional athletes come back.  That’s why they’re professional,” said junior Jason Brunette.

 There is no denying Nadal has had an incredible year since coming back from his injury.  With two wins from the South American clay season, four wins from the European court season, and three wins from the American hard court season, including two Grand Slams (French and U.S. Open), one can only stand back in awe at his accomplishments.

 “I thought it was pretty cool that he could stay on top with people like Federer and Murray going hard,” said sophomore Julia Thomas.

 Of course not all of Nadal’s matches ended with him taking the glory.  During the highly publicized Wimbledon tournament at the end of June, Nadal was bested by an unranked Belgian player, Steve Darcis.  This upset was the most talked about loss during the entire tournament, based solely on the fact that it was plausible that Nadal’s knee injury was the cause of the loss.  Many were concerned that this would be the end of Nadal’s career.

 “I didn’t think he would ever be the same.  I didn’t necessarily think it would be the end, but the start of the decline,” said Brunette, recalling the match.

 Following the Wimbledon upset, Nadal proved himself worthy of the number one title by winning all of the American hard court matches.  By the end of the matches, ending with Nadal’s emotional U.S. Open win, Nadal was only 120 points short of the number one title, which was held by professional Serbian tennis player, Novak Djokovic, a longtime rival of Nadal’s.

 The end of the American hard court tournament brought about the beginning of the Asian hard court season, the China Open.  This meant one thing to Nadal and his supporters:  the race to number one was upon them.  Nadal only needed to win the semifinal in which he was pitted against professional Czech Republic player, Tomas Berdych.  The match ended before the normal two to three sets were over due to Berdych retiring injured, giving Nadal his number one title back and dethroning Djokovic who had been number one since November 2012.

There are generally mixed feelings about Nadal’s return to number one.  For some fans, this is the moment they have been waiting for since the Spaniard’s return, and for others, this is slightly disappointing to those who want to see someone else take the title.

 “Yes and no [Nadal deserves the title].  No because he’s kind of had his turn at being number one.  He’s already been number one and beaten number one in the world a whole bunch of times, but yes because he’s good enough to do it again,” said Thomas.

 Those who watched Djokovic’s following matches closely noticed he was playing a lot harder than he had all year, especially in the final of the China Open, in which Djokovic and Nadal played against each other.  Djokovic took the win, but Nadal remained number one.  By this time, Djokovic would have to gain over forty points to reclaim his title.

 “[He’s] Probably a little upset, but he’s eager to get out there and have his spot back.  He’s going to take it back,” said Brunette.

 Unfortunately for Djokovic and his supporters, he was not able to reclaim the title in any of the tournaments following the China Open, and Nadal had gained even more points, despite not making it to the finals and semifinals in the following matches.

 The culminating point in the 2013 tennis season, the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour Finals held in London, England, was literally a race to number one for the year.  For Djokovic to be number one, he would have had to make it to the finals of the tournament and win, but for Nadal to stay number one, he only needed to win two matches.  Nadal met that goal in his straight set defeat over Swiss player, Stanislas Wawrinka.

 The 2013 tennis season definitely played in Nadal’s favor, giving him two Grand Slams and his number one title, but fans are slightly skeptical as to what 2014 will bring, starting with the Australian Open in January, the first Grand Slam of the tennis season.  Some are worried about injuries plaguing many of the players, and some are worried for Nadal holding onto his title.

 “[Nadal will hold his title] Until the end of the Australian Open because Djokovic won there last year and he’s going to defend his title again in 2014,” said Brunette.

 Thomas, however, thinks differently.  “[A] Couple of years.  Probably three years before someone moves up,” she said.

 It is still very early to say what will happen in 2014 other than the guarantee that there will be fantastic tennis to watch.  Nadal’s fans are sure to chant “Vamos Rafa”, a motivational phrase meaning “Go Rafa”, under their breath while watching any match he plays in, hoping he moves forward in 2014 with the same momentum he had this year.