Rafael Nadal was assured a return to world number one for the first time since July of 2014 on Monday when 19-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer withdrew from this week’s ATP Cincinnati Masters tournament. Federer, this year’s Wimbledon and Australian Open champion, was the only player who could have denied world number two Nadal the top spot in next Monday’s rankings. “I am very sorry to pull out of the Western and Southern Open as I always enjoy playing,” Federer said. For Federer to have taken the top spot at Cincinnati, he would have had to at least reach the semi-finals. Had Federer reached the final, Nadal would have had to win the title to stop the Swiss star from becoming number one.

Source: Hindustan Times August 14, 2017 16:52 UTC