ATP 2011 – Ranking Review

Following the conclusion of the 2011 ATP World Tour Finals, the tennis season for top male professionals came to a close.

Only the Davis Cup final remains to be decided but with the publication of the year-end rankings on Monday, we have a clear view of how the season went for the young players.

Here are some of the winners and losers of the 2011 ATP World Tour.

High-climbers

Juan Martin Del Potro (#258 to #11): Still only 23, the former US Open champion had been as low as #484 in February but battled back from a persistent wrist injury to end the year on the fringes of the top 10 and can still win the Davis Cup with Argentina.

Kei Nishikori (#98 to #25): On the court, 2011 proved to be the best season for the Japanese 21-year-old since winning the 2008 Newcomer of the Year award. Outside tennis, he suffered tragedy when his homeland was hit by a deadly tsunami. After strenuous campaigning, he transformed his ranking by reaching his first Masters 1000 semi-final and became Japan’s highest-ranked male player in tennis history.

Milos Raonic (#156 to #31): The 20-year-old won the 2011 Newcomer of the Year award thanks mostly to a blistering start to the season. A fourth round run at the Australian Open followed by his first title at the SAP Open in San Jose took him into the top 50 for the first time.

Donald Young (#127 to #39): Reached his highest ever ranking position after making his first ATP final in Bangkok and the last 16 of his home tournament the US Open. The 22-year-old left-hander recorded wins over Stanislas Wawrinka and Andy Murray along the way.

Bernard Tomic (#208 to #42): His standout achievement was reaching the Wimbledon quarter-finals as an 18-year-old which propelled the Aussie into the top 100. Third round appearances at his home Grand Slam as well as the Shanghai Masters took him into the top 50.

Ryan Harrison (#173 to #79): The 19-year-old American broke into the top 100 with a successful string of results on the hard courts of his home country. Semi-final runs in Atlanta and Los Angeles were halted by US no.1 Mardy Fish. 

Cedrik-Marcel Stebe (#375 to #81): Having only turned professional in 2010, Stebe’s rise to the top 100 has been rapid. Two Challenger Tour titles in September qualified the 21-year-old for the inaugural Challenger Tour Finals, which he also won.

Stagnates

Grigor Dimitrov (#106 to #76): On the surface it may seem like a decent season for the 20-year-old Bulgarian but for a man dubbed the next Roger Federer, he’s yet to take that great leap forward. He did have his best Grand Slam performances in his career and had been on the cusp of the top 50 but the former junior US Open and Wimbledon champion fell away.

Ricardas Berankis (#87 to #125): Lithuania’s best ever player looked set to have a progressive year until he injured his back before the start of the clay court season. His performances in Challenger tournaments kept him from falling too far from his 2010 year-end ranking.

Biggest Fallers

Ernests Gulbis (#24 to #61): Much like Dimitrov, Gulbis is a player many expect(ed) to make the top 10. Now aged 23, his chances of making a name for himself are dwindling as he finishes the year outside the top 50.

Thiemo De Bakker (#43 to #223): The former Dutch number two has a string of first round defeats to his name and the 23-year-old became restricted to Challenger events towards the end of the season as his ranking dropped outside the top 200.

Honourable mentions

Alexandr Dolgopolov won his first ATP title in Croatia and moved into the top 20.

Youngsters Gastao Elias, Aljaz Bedene and Vasek Pospisil all finished inside the top 200.

Former US Open junior champion Jack Sock made the top 400 while 18-year-old Brazilian Guilherme Clezar is already in the top 300.

For a full list of the official 2011 year-end rankings click here.