Stan Wawrinka is certainly in the hunt for the World No. 1 ranking. That's mainly due to his play in each of the last three majors. Wawrinka won the 2016 US Open last fall, he made the semifinals at the Australian Open earlier this season, and he finished runner-up to Rafael Nadal at the 2017 French Open. Those three events in isolation, without looking at other results, have helped put the Swiss in contention for top spot. It's possible, albeit unlikely that he could be ranked No. 1 following Wimbledon 2017 next month.
Grass is Wawrinka's worst surface
The grass-court Grand Slam is the one that Wawrinka has had the most troubles in over the years. For that reason, he isn't exactly poised to do well at the All England Club this season. The current World No. 3 has made two quarterfinals at Wimbledon over the years, but never the semifinals. Last year he fell in the second round to Juan Martin del Potro.
That result is part of the reason why Wawrinka has a lot to gain at Wimbledon this season. As of the current rankings, Wawrinka is the World No. 3 and he is about 1100 ranking points behind Rafael Nadal and over 3200 points behind Andy Murray. Those are the players that Wawrinka would need to do poorly at Wimbledon 2017 in order to get to the No.
1 ranking.
Last season, with his 2nd-round exit at the All England Club, Wawrinka earned just 45 ranking points. If he won the title this season, not only would it give him a career Grand Slam, but it would almost give him a full 2000 points added to his current total.
If Andy Murray, who won the title last season at Wimbledon 2016, suffered an early to middle-round exit this season then Wawrinka could supplant the Scot immediately following Wimbledon 2017.
After all, Murray has a full 2000 ranking points that he could potentially lose. The Scot has struggled this season, noting an early-round loss at London's Queen's Club not long ago. It's plausible enough that Murray might suffer a loss at Wimbledon in the first week given his form.
Overtaking Nadal will be hard for Wawrinka
But Wawrinka catching Nadal with the Wimbledon results certainly isn't something to bank on. The Spaniard is already ranked higher than Wawrinka and Nadal did not play at Wimbledon 2016. That being the case, Nadal has so much to gain with a strong Wimbledon result. If the World No. 1 changed hands following Wimbledon play, then it would likely be the Spaniard that would supplant Murray.
However, Wawrinka certainly is not without his hopes. Murray's struggles are real, and Nadal has turned in several severe losses at Wimbledon since last making the final in 2011. Despite his incredible play on clay, he might suffer an upset at Wimbledon in July. A combination of Nadal doing poorly, Murray doing poorly, and Wawrinka winning the title might see 'The Stanimal' reach new heights on tour.
