By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Tuesday June 22, 2021
Feliciano Lopez joined an elite group of ATP players with his win over Karen Khachanov on Tuesday in Mallorca.
Photo Source: Getty
Feliciano Lopez continues to prove that age is just a number as he approaches 40. Today in Mallorca the legendary Spaniard became the 10th active player to notch 500 career ATP wins with his 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 triumph over Russia’s Karen Khachanov.
Active ATP Players with 500 or More Match Victories
Roger Federer, 1,247
Rafael Nadal, 1,027
Novak Djokovc, 961
Andy Murray, 678
Richard Gasquet, 556
Fernando Verdasco, 554
Marin Cilic 533
Stan Wawrinka, 533
Tommy Robredo, 533
Feliciano Lopez, 500
Lopez has been impressive on tour since turning 35, and the Spaniard admits that it was something that he never really expected to happen. As he grew up on tour he saw many legends of the sport call it a career when they turned 30, but he says that he started to put up some excellent results after turning 35, such as winning the Queen’s title in 2017 and 2019, and that kept him motivated to press on.
"It's been a bit easier in the last four or five years because I have been achieving things that I never thought I could be achieving at this stage of my career,” Lopez said last year at Roland Garros. "That gives me that extra motivation to keep training and to keep travelling, and it's much easier when you have the good results, to keep going."
500 wins isn't Lopez's only remarkable achievement. At the moment, Lopez is the owner of the longest streak of consecutive Grand Slam main draws played, at 76. He’ll make it 77 next week at Wimbledon—it’s a testament to his longevity, and one of those records that may never be broken.
“More than the 500 wins, the important thing to me is the chance to keep playing in these kinds of tournaments and to keep being competitive,” the Spaniard told ATPTour.com. “I didn’t expect to be able to play at the level I am on the ATP Tour at 40 years of age, which I will be in September.”
Lopez will bid for career win No.501 at Mallorca on Thursday when he meets France’s Adrian Mannarino in the quarterfinals.