Tennis Rankings 2016: Where Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal And Novak Djokovic Stack Up As French Open Looms

Top-ranked ranked Novak Djokovic got his 2015 campaign off to a blistering start. He burst out of the gate to win his then-fifth Australian Open title and largely cruised in the build up before the French Open.

The 28-year-old Serb may be even sharper in 2016 and with a little under three months left until the trip to Roland Garros he’s shown no signs of slowing down. He has dominated the rankings, leading No. 2 Andy Murray by almost twice as many points, and should be a favorite to win the French Open when the Grand Slam tournament begins on May 16.

Djokovic has a 14-1 singles record with two titles, including this year’s Aussie championship, and his main competitors for the ever-elusive French title haven’t looked nearly as strong. Djokovic has made three French finals, including the last two, but he couldn’t overcome a career performance from Stan Wawrinka in last year’s final.

One issue that can slow Djokovic’s pursuit of the career Grand Slam is an injury, and the unfortunate inevitability has reared its ugly head. Just last week, Djokovic was forced to retire in the Dubai quarterfinals due to an infection in both eyes, resulting in his only loss of the season thus far.

Before he was forced to pull out against No. 24 Feliciano Lopez, Djokovic had appeared in 17 straight finals and won 13 titles. The 11-time champion was prepping for clay-court tournaments ahead of his trip to Paris.

"I just hope this problem with the eye will fade away in the next couple of days," he told reporters after the Dubai retirement. "I got a lot of important events waiting for me in the next period. Of course, Davis Cup back home and Indian Wells, Miami, and of course clay-court season."

Djokovic’s main competition for this year’s French Open is the same tandem that’s loomed throughout his prime: No. 3 Roger Federer and No. 5 Rafael Nadal.

Federer has posted a respectable 8-2 record and reached deep into his two tournament appearances, losing in the Brisbane finals to Milos Raonic and to Djokovic at the Aussie semis in four sets. But he hasn’t advanced past the semis since 2012 nor won it all since 2009. Yet, the Swiss star is still an undeniable force, even at age 34. Since Nov. 2011, Federer only spent one year outside of the Top 3 of the ATP rankings.

Nadal, 29, has gone 6-3 with no titles thus far this season but the nine-time French champion and all-around clay master will always be a threat to Djokovic and Federer, or anyone else, on tennis’ trickiest surface.

Still, Nadal will need to build momentum and post far stronger results in the weeks leading up to the French. Reportedly training in Mexico, Nadal is preparing for Indian Wells after a semifinal Rio Open loss to Pablo Cuevas and to Dominic Thiem in Argentina earlier last month.

The Spaniard had seen his ranking dip all the way down No. 10 in the summer before bouncing back with a late surge to No. 5.

ATP Men’s Rankings and Points

1.Novak Djokovic, 16,580

2.Andy Murray, 8,765

3.Roger Federer, 8,295

4.Stan Wawrinka, 6,325

5.Rafael Nadal, 4,810

6.Kei Nishikori, 4,030

7.Tomas Berdych, 3,900

8.David Ferrer, 3,505

9.Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, 2,950

10.Richard Gasquet, 2,715