Rafael Nadal, Ana Ivanovic to play in Richard Branson's event this week

While Novak Djokovic is back to Belgrade to play in the Davis Cup final against the Czech Republic this weekend, Rafael Nadal is already in the Caribbean for Richard Branson's Necker Cup.

Nadal with girlfriend Maria Francisca and baby Kristian Kriek in a car ride to the hotel in Necker Island

The Necker Cup is an exclusive Pro-Am event held on Sir Richard Branson’s private island Necker Island in the British Virgin Islands held on November 12-16th. If the Necker Cup is not exciting enough for you, then it has to be Super Bowl to be held in February next year in New Orleans. To get yourself prepared for more winning moments, visit Super Bowl XLVIII Bets.

Cirstea and Ivanovic on a private flight to the Necker island

Back to the Necker Cup, some of us may not be too familiar with the event. Sixteen (16) ATP/WTA Tour Players/Legends are paired up with sixteen (16) amateur teams of all levels to compete in the fun tennis event. A handicapped scoring format is implemented to make it competitive for every player. Each team consists of one pro and up to two amateurs. Teams will compete to win their bracket and earn a chance to play in the Necker Cup Finals.

Of course besides playing tennis, participants also get to do a lot of island activities.

(Images via Facebook, Instagram)

Notable ATP tennis statistics in 2013

Finally we have concluded a dramatic year with Novak Djokovic retaining his ATP World Tour Finals trophy beating world no.1 Rafael Nadal in straight sets.

The World Tour Finals have always been regarded as the Super Bowl of tennis and by winning the title, it gives Djokovic a boost after losing the no.1 rank in October. Speaking of the Super Bowl, the big event will take place in February 2014 in New Orleans. Assuming you're a fan, we would encourage you to check out the 2014 Super Bowl betting sites.

Set aside the World Tour Finals, Nadal has made a great comeback this year by winning two Grand Slams, the French Open and the US Open that adds up to 13 in total.

Grand Slam winners in 2013

Grand Slam finals in 2013
Australian Open: Novak Djokovic beat Andy Murray 6-7, 7-6, 6-3, 6-2
French Open: Rafael Nadal beat David Ferrer 6-3, 6-2, 6-3
Wimbledon: Murray beat Djokovic 6-4, 7-5, 6-4
US Open: Nadal beat Djokovic 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1

Besides winning more Grand Slam titles more than any players this year, Nadal also won 5 more ATP Masters 1000 to come up with a massive total of 26! That's an incredible achievement by the 27-year-old. If Nadal continues to be healthy in 2014, he is expected to keep his winning streak especially on clay. If you want to achieve exactly the same winning moments, we strongly recommend you to go to Super Bowl XLVIII prop bets.

Nadal's achievement in 2013

Masters 1000 tournament winners in 2013
Indian Wells: Rafael Nadal
Miami: Andy Murray
Monte Carlo: Novak Djokovic
Madrid: Rafael Nadal
Rome: Rafael Nadal
Montreal: Rafael Nadal
Cincinnati: Rafael Nadal
Shanghai: Novak Djokovic
Paris: Novak Djokovic

Titles in 2013
Rafael Nadal - 10
Novak Djokovic - 6
Andy Murray - 4
Juan Martín del Potro - 4
Richard Gasquet - 3

This has been the year where we have the most winners over 30 years old. Is that a good sign? Not exactly I guess. We hope to see more young players winning more titles but it seems like it's not going to happen so soon.

Over 30 Winners - 16 (most since 1975)
David Ferrer with the Buenos Aires trophy (Reuters)
David Ferrer - Auckland 30 years, 9 months
David Ferrer - Buenos Aires 30 years, 10 months
Tommy Robredo - Casablanca 30 years, 11 months
Tommy Haas - Munich 35 years, 1 month
Albert Montanes - Nice 32 years, 6 months
Roger Federer - Halle 31 years, 10 months
Feliciano Lopez - Eastbourne 31 years, 9 months
Nicolas Mahut - ‘s-Hertogenbosch 31 years, 5 months
Nicolas Mahut - Newport 31 years, 5 months
Carlos Berlocq - Bastad 30 years, 5 months
Ivo Karlovic - Bogota 34 years, 4 months
Mikhail Youzhny - Gstaad 31 years, 1 month
Tommy Robredo - Umag 31 years, 2 months
Jurgen Melzer - Winston-Salem 32 years, 3 months
Tommy Haas - Vienna 35 years, 6 months
Mikhail Youzhny - Valencia 31 years, 4 months

Longest Winning Streaks
Player - Matches - Duration
Novak Djokovic - 22 - September 13-November 11
Rafael Nadal - 22 - April 22-June 24
Rafael Nadal - 22 - August 5-October 6
Rafael Nadal - 18 - February 11-April 21
Novak Djokovic - 17 (22 back to 2012) - January 14-March 16
Fabio Fognini - 13 - July 8-July 28
Andy Murray - 13 - June 10-August 8
Andy Murray - 10 - January 1-January 27

Most aces served
John Isner (Reuters)
John Isner - 979
Milos Raonic - 883
Kevin Anderson - 651

(Images via Menstennisforums; statistics via Eurosport)

ATP World Tour Finals (WTF) 2013: Fantastic finish for Novak Djokovic

Rafael Nadal has to wait for another year before he can give the WTF title another shot. That is the only major title missing from his CV after playing as a professional player for 13 years.

Despite the loss, Djokovic who captured the year-end title for a third time said that the no.1 rank in Nadal's hands is well deserved because the Spaniard has won 2 Grand Slam titles this year, the best out of all players this year.

Djokovic, a favourite to win this tournament, brought the curtain down on the 2013 season with a convincing 6-3 6-4 win.

Djokovic caught up with One Direction member Niall Horan after winning the championship.

It will be exciting to see how these two players perform in 2014 especially at the Australian Open where Nadal was missing earlier this year.

Meanwhile, Fernando Verdasco and David Marrero upset favourite duo Bob and Mike Bryan 7-5 6-7(3) 10-7 in the doubles final.

(Images via ATP, Getty Images)