Is Rafael Nadal on the verge of No.1?

With both Andy Murray and Angelique Kerber’s No.1 ranking under threat this fortnight at Wimbledon, there has been a lot of talk about the coveted position.

What does Rafael Nadal have to do to replace Murray? Who are the contenders to become the WTA Tour’s No.1?

There are a lot of questions and unfortunately the answers are complicated – so let us break it down for you…

The race for ATP No.1

After last year’s Wimbledon points are removed, Murray’s lead over Nadal is reduced to 105 points.

Stan Wawrinka could have reached No.1, but his upset round one loss means he is now out of contention.

Novak Djokovic is still a chance to return to the top spot if he wins the title, as long as both Murray and Nadal lose before the semifinals. (See we were not lying when we said it was complicated!)

The table below highlights potential points the top-four ranked players could earn at each stage of the tournament. The totals in bold are their current points:

The race for WTA No.1

Change looks most likely on the WTA Tour – and Czech Karolina Pliskova is in the prime position.

Current No.1 Angelique Kerber is defending finals points, so needs to make at least the final again to have any chance of retaining her top spot.

In the live rankings, world No.3 Pliskova rises above world No.2 Romanian Simona Halep (a Wimbledon quarterfinalist last year) by 575 points. It means Halep needs to make at least the semifinals to have any chance of reaching No.1:

RELATED: The fight for WTA’s top spot

Some ‘top’ facts…

• Wimbledon 2012 was the last time both the ATP and WTA tours welcomed new No.1s after a Grand Slam. Roger Federer replaced Novak Djokovic, while Victoria Azarenka dethroned Maria Sharapova.
• Only four players have held the ATP’s No.1 spot in the past decade: Federer, Nadal, Djokovic and Murray.
• There has been 10 different women reach the WTA’s top spot in the past decade – and both Halep and Pliskova are hoping to become the 11th.
• Since July 2007, the No.1 ranking has changed nine times on the ATP and 23 times on the WTA.
• It has been 157 weeks since Rafael Nadal was the world No.1. Andy Murray is now in his 36th consecutive week in the top spot.
• No Romanian or Czech woman has ever reached the WTA’s top spot. (Czech-born Martina Navratilova switched nationalities to the USA before rankings were officially introduced in late 1975).

SMASHTALK: What to expect on Wimbledon’s day three