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WTA and ATP Race: Rankings Explained

By Geoff Nichols

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WTA and ATP Race: Rankings Explained

In tennis, the official WTA and ATP rankings are a 52-week points total that show which player has performed best over the last year, but there are also WTA and ATP race rankings that offer a different perspective on things.

Rankings in any sports can be confusing, especially when there are a couple of systems to choose from, so we have created this guide to explain the ins and outs of the different rankings.

Official Rankings

The official rankings, which is what is being used when a player’s world ranking is stated and also for seeding in tournaments, is the conventional means of ordering players. Any tournaments a player will have played in the preceding 52 weeks will contribute to their rankings.

The more prestigious a tournament, the more rankings points that are available. For example, on the ATP circuit winning a Grand Slam is worth 2000 points. It is an effective system that is utilised across a number of sports and the number one player tends to deserve their place at the top of the rankings.

Race Rankings

The race differs slightly for the official rankings and is often very interesting to look at. In the race rankings, every player starts for zero points at the start of the year and each tournament is worth the same amount as in the official rankings.

It offers a different perspective on the form of players, as much can change in the off-season. For example we can see the Rafael Nadal is currently at world number 3 in the official ATP rankings, but in the race he is a number 9. It shows that in 2015 he hasn’t performed at his best.

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Stan Wawrinka, on the other hand, has the number 3 spot in the race rankings that corresponds to his fantastic start to the year which has included a semi-final run in the Australian Open as well as a title in Chennai which earned him 250 points in the race.

Another interesting feature of the race comes when looking at qualification for the ATP World Tour finals. This is the end of year tournament that only the Top 8 players in the world qualify for. The race rankings offer a good image of who is looking good to qualify.

Come the end of the year the race rankings effectively become the official rankings, as they both are the points total of the last 52 weeks of action. It is a fantastic way of seeing how the rankings might shape up come the end of the season if certain player can continue their form in the coming months.

Next: Will Stan Wawrinka be a one slam wonder?

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