Federer tops Forbes list of world's highest paid tennis players with 71.5 mln dollar-earnings

Swiss tennis ace Roger Federer has reportedly topped the Forbes magazine's list of world's highest paid tennis players with earnings worth 71.5 million dollars, despite slipping to No.7 in the ATP rankings.

According to the Courier Mail, the list, which takes into account tennis players' earnings between June 2012 and June 2013, was published to coincide with the start of the US Open, the year's last Grand Slam event.

Often considered as the best tennis player of all time, Federer reportedly accumulated the amount during the 12-month period, boosted by a December 2012 tour of South America that netted him 15.59 million dollars for playing six matches.

According to Forbes, the 17-time major winner has the most impressive endorsement portfolio in sports, with ten sponsors, including Nike, Rolex, Wilson, Credit Suisse and champagne brand Moet and Chandon, that collectively pay him more than 44.5 million dollars annually.

Meanwhile, Forbes said that Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova comes second on the list, with 32.3 million dollars earnings, while world No.1 Novak Djokovic comes in third, with 30-million dollar earnings, half of which comes from prize money.

The report further said that Spanish star Rafael Nadal is ranked fourth on the list with 29.4 million-dollar earnings despite sustaining a knee injury that put him off the field for seven months.