Federer Passes Lendl With 1,072 Match Wins

Roger Federer’s love for the sport is undiminished in his 19th season as a pro.

In beating Florian Mayer at the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart today for his 1,072nd victory, he moves past Ivan Lendl for second place in the Open Era match wins list. Only Jimmy Connors, with 1,256 career match wins, stands in front of Federer now.

“I never thought I would be playing for such a record,” said Federer. “Of course I take them with a smile and now that I’m on the same level as Ivan Lendl or I’m chasing Jimmy Connors in terms of match wins. For me they were unreachable tennis players when I was growing up, because I never had any chance to play against them. I only knew them from TV and they were the best players we had in the game. For me to be at that level now, can motivate me for more wins in the future.”

Two months shy of his 35th birthday, the Swiss superstar remains dedicated and committed to working hard in order to play consistently well. Federer has striven to improve and evolve ever since his ATP World Tour debut at Gstaad in 1998. For the past 14 seasons he has been one of the world’s premier sportsmen.

Today’s feat reflects his desire and his hunger to extend his longevity at the highest level.

CAREER MATCH WINS LEADERS (Open Era) – Roger Federer is one of only three players in the Open Era (since 1968) to win at least 1,000 singles matches on the ATP World Tour. He became the first player since Ivan Lendl in 1992 to reach 1,000 match wins on 11 January 2015 in Brisbane. Here is a breakdown of some Hall of Fame careers:

MATCH WINS MILESTONES – Here is a look at Federer’s milestone match wins throughout his outstanding career. Six times Federer has reached a match milestone and gone on to win the tournament title:

MOST WINS (10 or more) BY COUNTRY (28 TOTAL) – Federer has won 1,072 matches in 28 different countries. Here is the breakdown:

MATCH WINS BY SURFACE

Special statistical assistance courtesy of Graham Edgar and Greg Sharko.