Why He's No. 60

Roger Federer is the No. 1-ranked tennis player in the world, a spot he's held for more than four years. When it comes to tennis, he's more than a pro -- he's a natural.

Back Stage

Roger Federer was born on August 8, 1981, in Basel, Switzerland. While growing up in the suburbs of Basel, he excelled in tennis and soccer, leading some to believe that his future would be in kicking a ball rather than hitting one with his racket. Nevertheless, Roger Federer picked tennis by the age of 12, a game he had played since he was 6. As a young player, he looked up to stars like Stefan Edberg and Boris Becker, and he wanted nothing more than to follow in their footsteps.  There isn't much that Federer has yet to accomplish in tennis, but he is still hungry. He has his sights set on being the first man since Ron Laver to win all four Grand Slam events in one year. Federer is already a fixture in the greatest-player-of-all-time conversation and if he continues at this pace, there won't be much of a conversation left. Federer's first ATP tournament victory came in February, when he defeated Julien Boutter in the final of the Milan Indoor, where his tennis idol Stefan Edberg had won his first career title in 1984. Federer reached his first ATP Masters Series (AMS) final at the Miami Masters, where he lost to Andre Agassi. He won his next AMS final in Hamburg. He also won both his Davis Cup singles matches against former world number ones, Russians Marat Safin and Yevgeny Kafelnikov. Despite early-round exits at the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open and the untimely, devastating loss of his long-time Australian coach and mentor. Federer challenged for the top ranking in men's tennis during 2003, finishing the year at World No. 2 just behind Andy Roddick and just ahead of Juan Carlos Ferrero. Federer had one of the most dominating and successful years in the open era of modern men's tennis.[27] He won three of the four Grand Slam singles tournaments, did not lose a match to anyone ranked in the top ten, won every final he reached, and was named the ITF Tennis World Champion. Federer won three of the four Grand Slam singles tournaments and ended the year ranked number one, with his points ranking several thousand points greater than that of his nearest competitor, Rafael Nadal. Federer won his third Australian Open and tenth Grand Slam singles title when he, as defending champion, won the tournament without dropping a set, defeating Fernando González of Chile in the final. Federer began the year by attempting to defend his title at the Australian Open. He lost, however, in the semifinals to eventual champion Novak Djokovic 7–5, 6–3, 7–6(5). This ended his male record of ten consecutive Grand Slam finals.

Forcaste

Since 2004, Roger Federer has been known as the most dominant men's tennis player in the world. Federer has won nine Grand Slam tournaments in 30 appearances. He is also the only player to consecutively win three U.S. Open and Wimbledon titles in the same year. Only Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl have enjoyed longer uninterrupted streaks as the No. 1 ranked tennis player. Federer is already touted as the best player of all time, as he holds the record for most consecutive singles wins (55 games) in North America. He is also the only player to win the Wimbledon and U.S. Open singles titles in three consecutive years.