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Brian Swartz · 01-03-2023, 12:04 AM

Year 102 Top Ten Rankings

1. Ben Faille (23, FRA, 96%, 9.44, +0.12) - 16,170

Stupidly good and still improving, Faille had one the best disappointing seasons in tennis history. He was 'only' 90-5, winning all four Slams and five Masters. When you're as good as Ben is, the question is still 'why did you lose four Masters and the Tour Finals' at some level, and he had a couple really unlucky defeats in there. He's only playing against himself and history really though, and will continue to be the prohibitive favorite in any tournament he enters.

2. Leon Polychroniadis (28, GRC, 88%, 9.07, -0.02) - 11,940

Polychroniadis refuses to accept that he's supposed to be sliding backwards; he nearly maintained his abilities and actually added several hundred points to his ranking total. A 6-3 mark against longtime rival Cananis helped.

3. Renke Cananis (28, DEU, 86%, 9.01, -0.14) - 9,250

Seriously over the hill though he may be, Cananis is still better than almost everyone else, and only recently was surpassed by Faille for having the best serve in the world.

4. Themis Xanthos (29, CYP, 86%, 8.76, -0.08) - 6,370

The age% numbers of 2-4 are unreal; shows how dominant these guys have been that they still haven't been knocked down, though Caballero is coming for Xanthos soon it appears.

5. Ene Caballero (21, ESP, 99%, 8.85, +0.20) - 5,510

#1 in Spain has been achieved; now how high can he push in the global game? I wouldn't bet anything worse than second, but this year the goal is just to kick Xanthos out and reach the top four. Caballero probably should have improved a little more this year, and appears to be a little serve-heavy. These are nitpicks, but when you're at the top the small stuff matters.

6. Toni Bardales (27, ESP, 87%, 8.60, -0.08) - 4,830

Me last year; 'Time has probably run out - perhaps he'll have one last hurrah this year but I doubt it'.

- I rate this statement Faction, a mixed bag. He was #6 last year and is #6 this year, but he did slide some in terms of results. A subpar clay season was largely rectified by that hard-to-believe upset of Faille and finalist finish at the Cincinnati Masters.

7. Jochen Weigle (27, SUI, 90%, 8.89, -0.03) - 4,680

Mr. Disappointment. I talked last year about how he'd basically finally turned the corner. Hard nope. It should have been his best year. The numbers say he's now at or just past his best tennis. I'm done expecting Weigle to fulfill his potential.

8. Oleg Urazov (24, CAN, 95%, 9.00, +0.09) - 4,410

Last year I said 'Urazov really broke through this year'. That was true. He's also second only to Weigle in the disappointment category. He does still have time, at least a couple more years - but doggone it Oleg, get busy. On paper you're basically co-#3 along with Cananis, better than Caballero, almost as good as Polychroniadis.

You're a 9.0 player. Canada doesn't get those every day. Play like it.

9. Solitris Papadias (28, GRC, 86%, 8.61, -0.07) - 3,580

An elder statesman holding on to what he can, but increasingly slipping.

10. Eddy Copperfield (29, AUS, 84%, 8.45, ??) - 3,070

Why are you even here, Eddy? Didn't even bother rating him last year, because he was finally over the hill enough that he'd never be seriously heard from again.

Good call.

Analysis

On the whole another small inching up of the average rating in the Top 10, 8.87 from 8.86 a year ago. At the same time, 7 of the players are actually getting worse. Caballero joining helps push a bit in the other direction. In the 'what on earth happened' category, last year's #10 Ale Ballok fell off a cliff and is now 17th.

The competition to get onto the first page is increasing, and I expect it to swallow up Copperfield and Papadias.

01-03-2023, 12:04 AM	#1356
Brian Swartz Grizzled Veteran Join Date: May 2006	Year 102 Top Ten Rankings 1. Ben Faille (23, FRA, 96%, 9.44, +0.12) - 16,170 Stupidly good and still improving, Faille had one the best disappointing seasons in tennis history. He was 'only' 90-5, winning all four Slams and five Masters. When you're as good as Ben is, the question is still 'why did you lose four Masters and the Tour Finals' at some level, and he had a couple really unlucky defeats in there. He's only playing against himself and history really though, and will continue to be the prohibitive favorite in any tournament he enters. 2. Leon Polychroniadis (28, GRC, 88%, 9.07, -0.02) - 11,940 Polychroniadis refuses to accept that he's supposed to be sliding backwards; he nearly maintained his abilities and actually added several hundred points to his ranking total. A 6-3 mark against longtime rival Cananis helped. 3. Renke Cananis (28, DEU, 86%, 9.01, -0.14) - 9,250 Seriously over the hill though he may be, Cananis is still better than almost everyone else, and only recently was surpassed by Faille for having the best serve in the world. 4. Themis Xanthos (29, CYP, 86%, 8.76, -0.08) - 6,370 The age% numbers of 2-4 are unreal; shows how dominant these guys have been that they still haven't been knocked down, though Caballero is coming for Xanthos soon it appears. 5. Ene Caballero (21, ESP, 99%, 8.85, +0.20) - 5,510 #1 in Spain has been achieved; now how high can he push in the global game? I wouldn't bet anything worse than second, but this year the goal is just to kick Xanthos out and reach the top four. Caballero probably should have improved a little more this year, and appears to be a little serve-heavy. These are nitpicks, but when you're at the top the small stuff matters. 6. Toni Bardales (27, ESP, 87%, 8.60, -0.08) - 4,830 Me last year; 'Time has probably run out - perhaps he'll have one last hurrah this year but I doubt it'. - I rate this statement Faction, a mixed bag. He was #6 last year and is #6 this year, but he did slide some in terms of results. A subpar clay season was largely rectified by that hard-to-believe upset of Faille and finalist finish at the Cincinnati Masters. 7. Jochen Weigle (27, SUI, 90%, 8.89, -0.03) - 4,680 Mr. Disappointment. I talked last year about how he'd basically finally turned the corner. Hard nope. It should have been his best year. The numbers say he's now at or just past his best tennis. I'm done expecting Weigle to fulfill his potential. 8. Oleg Urazov (24, CAN, 95%, 9.00, +0.09) - 4,410 Last year I said 'Urazov really broke through this year'. That was true. He's also second only to Weigle in the disappointment category. He does still have time, at least a couple more years - but doggone it Oleg, get busy. On paper you're basically co-#3 along with Cananis, better than Caballero, almost as good as Polychroniadis. You're a 9.0 player. Canada doesn't get those every day. Play like it. 9. Solitris Papadias (28, GRC, 86%, 8.61, -0.07) - 3,580 An elder statesman holding on to what he can, but increasingly slipping. 10. Eddy Copperfield (29, AUS, 84%, 8.45, ??) - 3,070 Why are you even here, Eddy? Didn't even bother rating him last year, because he was finally over the hill enough that he'd never be seriously heard from again. Good call. Analysis On the whole another small inching up of the average rating in the Top 10, 8.87 from 8.86 a year ago. At the same time, 7 of the players are actually getting worse. Caballero joining helps push a bit in the other direction. In the 'what on earth happened' category, last year's #10 Ale Ballok fell off a cliff and is now 17th. The competition to get onto the first page is increasing, and I expect it to swallow up Copperfield and Papadias. Last edited by Brian Swartz : 01-03-2023 at 12:04 AM.