Since February 2004 Roger Federer has remained the number one player in the world.

But Rafael Nadal has been on his heels ever since he became the second-ranked man in July 2005. The only man who has come close to conquering them is Novak Djokovic. But Djokovic’s countryman, Janko Tipsarevic continues to strengthen his game, and before long could over take the top two men.

'Already this year, Tipsarevic has reached a career-high ranking of 40'


At first glance, most spectators wouldn’t agree that Tipsarevic has a feasible chance of topping Federer or Nadal. but already this year, he has reached a career high ranking of 40

Two years ago he was ranked outside the top 130. Jumping 100 places in two years, is a great feat, and even though he may not be ranked in the top 10 right now, it wont be long before he makes his debut there.

Already this season the big-serving Serbian made a run to the third round of the Australian Open. Even though he fell fairly early on, he stretched Roger Federer to five sets, losing 7:6 6:7 7:5 1:6 8:10. They battled in the Australian heat for over four hours, and Tipsarevic barley fell short. For anyone to push Federer that much deserves some recognition.

He has proven on the challenger circuit that he can compete and win on any surface possible. He has been able to take down top players like Lleyton Hewitt, Fernando Verdasco, and Tommy Haas, and on numerous occasions push top-ranked players like Federer to the brink.

People may argue that nothing will ever come of Tipsarevic, beyond what he has already achieved. But if this Serb can get past his streaky play, and perform like he did during the Australian Open not much would be able to stop him. His strokes are pure power, and his serve is like a lethal weapon - he has the artillery.

Tipsarevic may not be competition right now for the top players, but take into consideration the Serbian is only 23. James Blake had the best results of his career a few years ago, when he was just a few years older than Tipsarevic is now.

With the top two players showing signs of vulnerability, whether it has to do with mono, or other factors, any number of competitors could take the opportunity to take over their spot. Not to mention both players are watched by millions, so eventually players will figure out how to defeat the tenacious Nadal and Federer.