A jubilant Caroline Garcia poses with the WTA Finals trophy (US Open - Twitter)
The year 2022 turned out to be a season where he found new stars who have the potential to ensure a bright future for tennis – here is the biggest ranking jumps.
The likes of Carlos Alcaraz, Casper Ruud, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Holger Rune, and Jannik Sinner have shown in various phases of the season that they have what it takes to run the show in the absence of stalwarts like Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. Tennis needed a year like this where legends like Djokovic and Nadal won titles but younger players gave them stiff challenges.
In women’s tennis, we saw the rise and rise of Iga Swiatek. She won 8 titles during the year and that includes a couple of Slam as well. The 21-year-old has shown her exceptional abilities to the tennis world, and she is destined for greatness as he career rolls on. Tunisian athlete, Ons Jabeur, has also had a stellar season, while a young talent like Elena Rybakina lifted the Wimbledon crown.
In this article, we will look at some of the biggest ranking jumps from players in 2022. Many players have made substantial improvements to their ATP/WTA rankings throughout the year.
The Chinese sensation had a sensational jump in the ATP rankings. He began the season ranked 1123 but finishes the season as the world No. 118. During the season, he won an ITF event in the USA and three tournaments on the Challenger circuit in Orlando, Rome, and Indianapolis.
However, his biggest result came at the US Open. Yibing won three qualifying matches and progressed to the main draw in Flushing Meadows. In the first round, he defeated 31st seed Nikoloz Basilashvili. This was the first win for a Chinese man at a singles match at any grand slam for 63 years.
Yibing followed it up with another win against Nuno Borges but eventually lost in the third round against defending champion Daniil Medvedev. Yibing created history by becoming the first Chinese man to reach the third round at a grand slam after Kho Sin-Khie achieved the feat at the 1946 Wimbledon.
The 20-year-old American player has also had an enormous jump in the rankings. He began the season ranked 573 in the ATP rankings but is currently placed at No. 97.
Shelton lost in three finals at Challenger events but finally won the title earlier this month in the Challenger event in Charlottesville. He followed it up with title triumphs in Knoxville and Champaign. The 20-year-old is currently on a 15-match winning streak. Like Yibing, Shelton has also shown a lot of potentials. Both men are still quite young and have a lot of time to rise even further in the rankings with consistent performances.
The experienced Frenchwoman had her best season on the tour this season. She climbed up from No. 74 in the rankings at the beginning of the year to No. 4 with the help of an impressive second half of the season.
Earlier in the year, Garcia won her second Grand Slam title when she teamed up with compatriot Kristina Mladenovic to win the doubles title at the French Open. She won four singles titles that included a triumph at the WTA Finals. Garcia also produced her best result at a singles event in a grand slam when she reached the semis at the US Open.
Another player who had an important jump in the rankings is Nick Kyrgios. The Australian athlete has walked the talk and showcased his skills on big stages. Kyrgios began the year at No. 93 but is currently ranked at No. 22.
Kyrgios produced his best result at a grand slam singles event when he finished runner-up at Wimbledon. Earlier in the year, Kyrgios won his first grand slam title when he won the doubles event at the Australian Open alongside compatriot Thanasi Kokkinakis. Kyrgios also won both the singles and doubles events at the Citi Open.
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