In 1998, Pete Sampras ended the ATP season as the world number one.
The American star, who went on to win 14 Grand Slam titles, fought off Petr Korda’s late challenge for the top spot.
Sampras finished the year on 3,784 points. Korda, the 1998 Australian Open champion, concluded 1998 on 3,484 points.
If you were in charge of tennis, what is the first rule you would change?
By doing so, Sampras – who never completed the career Grand Slam – had finished the season as the world number one for the sixth consecutive season, surpassing Jimmy Connors’ total of five.
Pete Sampras was consumed by breaking the year-end world number one record
In a 1999 interview with the Independent, Sampras admitted that chasing history in 1998 had taken its toll.
The strain of securing the year-end world number one spot culminated in Sampras withdrawing from the 1999 Australian Open due to mental and physical fatigue.
He said: “I was absolutely consumed by it.
“I would have gone to the North Pole to finish number one. It took a lot out of me and I was pretty miserable. When I got back home I was physically and mentally burnt out and there was no way I could find myself getting ready for the Australian Open.
“I only took a couple of months off, not six. It was a decision I needed to make and I’m glad I did it because I had been going so hard for so long. I was just telling the people in tennis there should be some sort of off-season and if there wasn’t going to be one I was going to make myself one.
“I’m not patting myself on the back but I have a hard time seeing that record ever broken because I have raised the bar so high. It’s mind-boggling because the game is so strong today. Staying on top for so long and dealing with the pressures and expectations is one of my greatest achievements. I have to say I surprised myself, I didn’t think I would ever do this.
“I have always been comfortable at number one. My personality helps me to cope with it. You might think I am boring but the fact that I don’t do or say much helps. When I play tournaments headlines aren’t really what I want, it has always been about holding up that cup.
“I am not a volatile guy with highs and lows who will go off the deep end, just this level-headed guy who keeps it reasonably simple. That’s my formula and that is what has worked for me.
Novak Djokovic is the tennis GOAT… Prove us wrong
“The only way I feel good about my tennis is if I am number one. You have to want it deep down; it has to be your life. Look at guys like Lendl and Connors. Tennis was their life and their personalities meant they needed to be number one.”
Sampras did not finish any of his remaining years on Tour as the world number one. From 1999 to 2003, Andre Agassi, Gustavo Kuerten, Lleyton Hewitt and Andy Roddick achieved the status of year-end world number one.
Has anyone come close to breaking Sampras’ record since?
The short answer is, no.
Roger Federer was Sampras’ closest challenger, claiming the year-end world number one spot on four consecutive occasions between 2004 and 2007. The Swiss maestro’s streak was ended by Rafael Nadal in 2008.
Remarkably, Novak Djokovic has never won the year-end world number one trophy more than twice consecutively. The Serbian star did so from 2011 to 2012, 2014 to 2015 and 2020 to 2021.
Djokovic holds the record for the most year-end world number one titles in history, with eight to his name.
Both Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer won the year-end world number one trophy five times. Nadal never won the trophy in consecutive years.
