How Nadal's four year-end No. 1 seasons match up

For the fourth time in his career, Rafael Nadal is the year-end No. 1 player in the world. With No. 2 Roger Federer absent in Paris, the Spaniard clinched the honor with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Hyeon Chung in the second round.

The 31-year-old is the oldest player in ATP history to finish as the year-end No. 1. He joins fellow legends Pete Sampras (6), Roger Federer (5) and Novak Djokovic (4) in the group of players who have ended at No. 1 at least four times.

“I’m very, very happy for everything,” Nadal said in Paris. “It has been an amazing year. One year ago, for sure I never dreamed about being World No. 1 again at the end of the season. It’s something that means a lot to me. But the season is not over.”

How does Nadal’s 2017 compare to his other three year-end No. 1 finishes?

Nadal’s most memorable stretch was becoming the first player since Bjorn Borg to win the Channel Slam (the French Open and Wimbledon). Both came at the expense of Federer. The feat began a streak of 46 weeks at No. 1.

He remains the only player to win majors on clay, grass and hard courts in the same year. He regained his No. 1 ranking for the second time and would stay there for 56 consecutive weeks until July 2011.

The 2013 season was an amazing comeback after knee injuries caused him to miss seven months from July 2012 to February 2013. He won an epic French Open semifinal over Djokovic and swept the US Open Series with wins in Canada, Cincinnati and New York.

Nadal’s most recent comeback saw him pull off La Decima with his tenth career titles in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Roland Garros. His US Open crown marked the 16th major title of his career.

Despite all that Nadal has achieved, he has somehow never won a year-end championships. Will that change in London later this month?

*Record still incomplete pending Paris and London