Novak Djokovic will end the year at the top of the world tennis rankings, it has been confirmed.
Rafael Nadal's defeat to Florian Mayer at the Shanghai Masters today (Thursday) means that the Serbian can not be caught at the summit of men's tennis.
The 24-year-old has lost only three matches this year, with two of those coming via retirement, and he has won 10 titles along the way, including the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.
Djokovic is expected to receive his number one ranking trophy at the ATP World Tour Finals in London next month.