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The 2007 ATP season once again saw Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal complete a sweep of the Grand Slams as they finished as the world’s No. 1 and No. 2 ranked players for the third consecutive year. But the outright domination by the Swiss superstar and Spanish sensation came under fire as challengers emerged up to the task of threatening the rivalry heralded as the best in all sports.

Novak Djokovic spearheaded the charge, injecting the ATP circuit with youthful exuberance as he fully unleashed his potential and personality in 2007. He cracked the Top 10 just two months shy of his 20th birthday and, following Wimbledon, rose to become the World No. 3. (DEUCE Magazine: Joker in the Pack Holds All the Aces )

He pronounced himself a serious contender at the Pacific Life Open when he became the first teenager to reach the title match at Indian Wells since Andre Agassi in 1990, and a fortnight later at the Sony Ericsson Open, became the youngest champion in Miami’s tournament history as he captured his first career ATP Masters Series shield.

He repeated the Masters Series triumph in even more impressive style months later at the Rogers Masters in Montreal, defeating five former and current Top 10 players in Nicolas Kiefer, David Nalbandian, then-World No. 3 Andy Roddick, No. 2 Nadal and No. 1 Federer. In doing so, he became the first man since Boris Becker in 1994 to defeat the world’s top three players at the same event.

The affable Djokovic, who continued to grow in popularity during the two weeks of the US Open with his spot-on impersonations, then battled his way into his first Grand Slam final – this time, faltering against Federer – to clinch his first invitation to the prestigious Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai.

Nalbandian picked up where Djokovic left off, salvaging a lackluster season as he ended the season with a flourish. The former World No. 3, who managed to reach only one ATP quarterfinal heading into the month of October, turned in a spectacular run at Madrid as he posted straight-sets wins over No. 2 Nadal in the quarterfinals, No. 3 Djokovic in the semifinals and No. 1 Federer in the final to clinch his first career ATP Masters Series title.

Two weeks later at the BNP Paribas Masters, the Argentine once again finished the week on top, en route defeating four Tennis Masters Cup qualifiers: Federer, David Ferrer, Richard Gasquet and Nadal. He became the first player to defeat Federer and Nadal in the same tournament twice and also became the first man to defeat both in a final.

But despite proof of their fallibility, Federer and Nadal still maintained the high benchmark for excellence on the ATP circuit.

Federer continued to rewrite history books, in February eclipsing Jimmy Connors’ almost 30-year record (160) for most consecutive weeks as World No.1 and at the US Open becoming the first player in history to reach all four Grand Slam finals in back-to-back years. He became the fourth player to finish No. 1 at least four straight years.

He claimed three Grand Slam crowns for the third time in four seasons: his third Australian Open crown, his fifth straight Wimbledon championship and his fourth consecutive at Flushing Meadows. But Federer’s Grand Slam perfection was marred for the second straight year by Nadal’s stronghold on the Roland Garros title.

Individually, he captured his 50th career ATP title with a win over American James Blake in the Cincinnati final. At his hometown in Basel, he surpassed Carlos Moya to become the match wins leader among active players. He capped off the season in Shanghai by winning his fourth Tennis Masters Cup title in five years.

On a more fulfilling level, Federer avenged two years of clay court torment at the hands of Nadal in the Hamburg final, snapping the Spaniard’s 81-match clay winning streak and denying him a historic sweep of the clay court ATP Masters Series titles. (DEUCE: The Last Time... with Roger Federer)

Nadal, whose title defenses in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Rome had earlier extended his streak, rebounded by defeating the Swiss for his third straight Roland Garros title. He then produced another remarkable run to reach the final at the All England Club, where he forced Federer to rally in the fifth set of an epic match for the right to raise the Wimbledon trophy.

2007 in Review continued...