Djokovic retains number one spot as Nadal drops to fifth

Rafael Nadal dropped out of the top four of men’s tennis for the first time since 2005, while Serena Williams moved to number…

Rafael Nadal dropped out of the top four of men’s tennis for the first time since 2005, while Serena Williams moved to number two in the women’s rankings.

Eleven-time major singles champion Nadal, who has been sidelined with a knee injury since June, slipped one spot to five. David Ferrer, who reached the last four at the Australian Open, is the highest-ranked Spaniard at four.Novak Djokovic of Serbia remains number one after he took his third straight Australian Open title against Britain’s Andy Murray on Sunday. Roger Federer of Switzerland is ranked second, while Murray is third.

Williams closes in on Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, who secured the number one spot by retaining her Australian Open title. Russia’s Maria Sharapova dropped to third.