As the year 2015 comes to a close, it should be within recognition that Novak Djokovic is the undisputed #1 player in the world. With a whopping 16,585 ranking points, he sits nearly 8,000 points above the #2 position. After him however, the debate over who claims title of the second, third, and fourth player in the world spurs debate. Andy Murray locked up the #2 position but is he really the best player of the 2015 ATP season? In my opinion, both Roger Federer (YE #3) and Stan Wawrinka (YE #4) make exceptional claims to that spot as well.
Andy Murray and His Return to Form
Despite my claims that Murray may not in fact be the second best player of 2015, he earned his position with consistency. He reached his eighth slam final of his career in Melbourne, losing in four sets to Djokovic. Shocking losses to Gilles Simon in Rotterdam and Borna Coric in Dubai left many puzzled. It could be down to the fact he had Davis Cup on his mind during the stated weeks. His spring hardcourt results with a semifinal in Indian Wells and final in Miami demonstrated improvement.
In addition, he threw a monkey off his back by winning his first career clay title in Munich. In the final he defeated Germany’s Philip Kohlschreiber in three sets. Carrying his momentum forward, he defeated Milos Raonic, Kei Nishikori, and the King of Clay Rafael Nadal on his home turf to win the Mutua Madrid Open; the first clay Masters 1000 of his career and first Masters title since winning the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami two years ago. The next few months of his season seemed relatively quiet, losing in the semifinals of the French Open and Wimbledon to Novak Djokovic and Federer respectively.
He came back strong in Montreal, winning the tournament and snapping an eight-match losing streak to Djokovic with a three set win in the final. It would be the last major highlight of his season though with a disappointing four set loss in the fourth round of the US Open to Kevin Anderson, and while he made the semifinals of Shanghai and the finals of Paris, tame losses to Djokovic had to be disheartening. However, he still has the opportunity to end his season on a high. As it stands he won four titles and reached the semifinals of three of the four majors, but is that enough to make his claim as the second best player in the world.
Stan Wawrinka: 2015 ATP Season’s Second Best?
Wawrinka makes the most obvious claim to the second best player of the 2015 ATP season with one simple fact: he was the only person to top Djokovic at the grand slam level this year. In doing that, he proved that his maiden slam title back at the Australian Open the previous year was no fluke. The Swiss #2 began his year by defending his title at the ATP 250 event in Chennai, followed by a semifinal run at the Australian Open where he was the defending champion. A five-set loss to eventual winner Djokovic saw his ranking fall to #9 in the world.
He did not let that keep him down as he defeated defending champion Tomas Berdych in the final of Rotterdam to claim the first ATP 500 title. After his title win in Rotterdam, all the wheels seem to come off on Wawrinka’s year. Between that title run and the French Open, he mounted a measly 8-7 record with losses to players ranked much lower than him scattered in between. His only saving grace during this period was his semifinal run in Rome, defeating Rafael Nadal but losing toFederer. During this time period, he also announced the separation from his wife which spurred controversy about his personal life and overall character. People began to wonder if his career was on the downhill slope. All of these troubles disappeared for Wawrinka in Paris as he defeated Federer and Djokovic to win his second grand slam title. It seemed almost like a phoenix-out-of-the-ashes moment as he had come from nowhere to win this title. By doing so, he snapped a 28-match winning streak by Djokovic and and denied him a Career Grand Slam.
The rest of his year was relatively quiet but not disappointing by any means. He won another ATP 500 title in Tokyo defeating good friend Benoit Paire in the final, and had semifinal runs at the US Open and the World Tour Finals in London. He reached the semifinals of three of the four majors and quarterfinals of Wimbledon. He finished as the #4 player in the world.
Roger Federer: Greatest of All Time but is He Here?
Federer by his illustrious standards had an incredibly disappointing year but for a 34-year old, it is safe to say that finishing the year at #3 in the world is hardly something to mope about. He may even best the second best of the 2015 ATP season. A disappointing start to the year with a third round loss to Andreas Seppi naturally turned a lot of heads. He quickly rebounded by defeating Djokovic in the final of Dubai in straight sets.
On a much slower surface, he reached the final of Indian Wells losing in three sets to the same player he had beaten in Dubai. His clay season was relatively quiet and at his age, is not quite up to the physical demands that the surface requires. He bowed out in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros to compatriot Wawrinka in straight sets. The summer season would bring greater moments for the 17-time grand slam winner. He reached the finals of Wimbledon and the US Open, losing to Novak Djokovic on both occasions. Additionally, he retained his title in Cincinnati, defeating Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic in succession to do so.
His post-US Open form is nothing to write home about despite wining the ATP 500 title in Basel in front of his home crowd, claiming his first win over long-time rival Nadal in over three years. In London, he reached yet another big final, winning all four matches en route to the final before Djokovic avenged his loss in the Round Robin stage.
Wrapping it Up
All three men showed flashes of brilliance that provide some warrant for them to be called the second best tennis player in the world. There will never be universal agreement on this concept as many dispute the importance of a slam title over a certain number of masters titles. Many would argue that Wawrinka had the best year of these three players simply because a slam title out-weighs any title the other two have won. Few would dispute that the other two would rather have another slam to their ranking than other titles. Despite this, it does not make him the second best player of the 2015 ATP season, that honor goes to Federer. He went 5-1 against the other two this year. Also, he recorded three wins over world #1, Djokovic. Wawrinka bit the dominant man of the year hardest on the biggest stage of tennis, but Federer did it better throughout the year. This is what makes him the second best tennis player of 2015.
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