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Brian Swartz · 08-04-2017, 09:05 PM

2054 Top Rankings

1. Mateo Kaspar(FRA, 25) -- 17,120

Kaspar amassed a 93-2 singles record in '53. 93-2. That ties Eric Gorritepe for the second-best season ever. Nobody else is worth mentioning. Due to his early RG loss, I would put this year at 'only' the third-best ever recorded, and the best by anyone other than the unquestioned GOAT. He's making his way up the leaderboards in total Slams(9, 6th), weeks at #1(133, T-8th), WTF won(4, T-3rd), and Masters(21, 6th). Right now he's not quite a top-tier all-time great, but he's established himself above the other second-tier guys(such as my players). And there's lots and lots of time left.

2. Gillo Fangio(ITA, 26) -- 9,440

Took a little longer than expected, but the pride of Italy has settled into his rightful spot as the top opposition. His 79-15 mark is a career-best, and this could be objectively his best year coming up. I expect a significant berth to develop below him, and he'll get a little closer to Kaspar but no way is he challenging the King.

3. Prakash Mooljee(SRI, 29) -- 9,120

Made the finals at four of the five big events and also Shanghai, but no major titles. It'll hard to duplicate even that performance now that he can't count on avoiding Kaspar until the championship match. Still good enough to definitely hang in the Top 4.

4. Guus Dircx(NLD, 23) -- 7,070

How's this for consistency: Dircx made the quarterfinals, no early and no later, for the first eight Masters this year. And then ensured he'd snag the #4 spot by reaching the final in Paris. The RG champ didn't do that great at the other Slams, but his rise should continue.

5. Johnny Browne(USA, 28) -- 5,950

Browne is headed the other direction. His 2 Slam titles show he was once a guy who could hang with the best in the world. Those days are a couple of years removed now.

6. Martin Zarco(ESP, 25) -- 5,410

Gets a little better each year, and had an impressive 79 wins this time around. If he can avoid early losses like he had this year in Rome and RG, he could threaten the Top 4.

7. Ariel Borja(USA, 25) -- 4,315

Continues to be a somewhat-underachieving player. Bit of a gatekeeper to the top contenders.

8. Sigmund Kronecker(DEU, 26) -- 4,050

Gunning for that 'clay assassin' position but so far Zarco's better at it. Best German player since Benda.

9. Ritwik Dudwadkar(SRI, 23) -- 3,590

The moment I have long feared is now here. Dudwadkar will move into the Top 8 at least and make the WTF this year, but he's going to be beating his head against the Kaspar/Fangio/Dircx wall for years. Have yourself a ball, buddy. He'll eventually win some of those battles; he got each of the last two guys at least once this season. With clay proficients Zarco and Kronecker clogging up that option for making progress, it's going to be interesting to see how quickly he's able to progress. Most of the players ahead of him can cause problems for him in the right conditions: even those who are objectively inferior.

10. Jake Jolland(USA, 27) -- 3,525

The Americans are doing something right: three of them in the Top 10.

Niklas is next, almost 400 points further down. This is the first page for the time being, with several guys in their prime serving as guardians after that. Nobody else is close to proving they are ready to break through them ... yet.

4(D). Anil Mehul(SRI, 37)

Two years older than anyone else even close to being a doubles contender, I wonder how long Anil can hang on. For now though, he's enjoying the ride. 249th in singles and recent results suggest he's no longer even of challenger-quality there.

5(J). Sushant Chiba(SRI, 17)

I don't think I've ever had a juniors player up this high. He's not going to stay there I don't think, but should be able to play some big events and take his chances. Current #1 Pavel Kutuzov has assented to be his doubles partner. That won't hurt.

1(M). Me. Right at 35k points with Nevstar slowly gaining, 3k+ behind. My total slightly recovered with a gain of about 700 pts. this year. Probably will continue to slowly rise as long as Dudwadkar and Mooljee can both hang near the top ... but that's going to be short-lived.

08-04-2017, 09:05 PM	#648
Brian Swartz Grizzled Veteran Join Date: May 2006	2054 Top Rankings 1. Mateo Kaspar(FRA, 25) -- 17,120 Kaspar amassed a 93-2 singles record in '53. 93-2. That ties Eric Gorritepe for the second-best season ever. Nobody else is worth mentioning. Due to his early RG loss, I would put this year at 'only' the third-best ever recorded, and the best by anyone other than the unquestioned GOAT. He's making his way up the leaderboards in total Slams(9, 6th), weeks at #1(133, T-8th), WTF won(4, T-3rd), and Masters(21, 6th). Right now he's not quite a top-tier all-time great, but he's established himself above the other second-tier guys(such as my players). And there's lots and lots of time left. 2. Gillo Fangio(ITA, 26) -- 9,440 Took a little longer than expected, but the pride of Italy has settled into his rightful spot as the top opposition. His 79-15 mark is a career-best, and this could be objectively his best year coming up. I expect a significant berth to develop below him, and he'll get a little closer to Kaspar but no way is he challenging the King. 3. Prakash Mooljee(SRI, 29) -- 9,120 Made the finals at four of the five big events and also Shanghai, but no major titles. It'll hard to duplicate even that performance now that he can't count on avoiding Kaspar until the championship match. Still good enough to definitely hang in the Top 4. 4. Guus Dircx(NLD, 23) -- 7,070 How's this for consistency: Dircx made the quarterfinals, no early and no later, for the first eight Masters this year. And then ensured he'd snag the #4 spot by reaching the final in Paris. The RG champ didn't do that great at the other Slams, but his rise should continue. 5. Johnny Browne(USA, 28) -- 5,950 Browne is headed the other direction. His 2 Slam titles show he was once a guy who could hang with the best in the world. Those days are a couple of years removed now. 6. Martin Zarco(ESP, 25) -- 5,410 Gets a little better each year, and had an impressive 79 wins this time around. If he can avoid early losses like he had this year in Rome and RG, he could threaten the Top 4. 7. Ariel Borja(USA, 25) -- 4,315 Continues to be a somewhat-underachieving player. Bit of a gatekeeper to the top contenders. 8. Sigmund Kronecker(DEU, 26) -- 4,050 Gunning for that 'clay assassin' position but so far Zarco's better at it. Best German player since Benda. 9. Ritwik Dudwadkar(SRI, 23) -- 3,590 The moment I have long feared is now here. Dudwadkar will move into the Top 8 at least and make the WTF this year, but he's going to be beating his head against the Kaspar/Fangio/Dircx wall for years. Have yourself a ball, buddy. He'll eventually win some of those battles; he got each of the last two guys at least once this season. With clay proficients Zarco and Kronecker clogging up that option for making progress, it's going to be interesting to see how quickly he's able to progress. Most of the players ahead of him can cause problems for him in the right conditions: even those who are objectively inferior. 10. Jake Jolland(USA, 27) -- 3,525 The Americans are doing something right: three of them in the Top 10. Niklas is next, almost 400 points further down. This is the first page for the time being, with several guys in their prime serving as guardians after that. Nobody else is close to proving they are ready to break through them ... yet. 4(D). Anil Mehul(SRI, 37) Two years older than anyone else even close to being a doubles contender, I wonder how long Anil can hang on. For now though, he's enjoying the ride. 249th in singles and recent results suggest he's no longer even of challenger-quality there. 5(J). Sushant Chiba(SRI, 17) I don't think I've ever had a juniors player up this high. He's not going to stay there I don't think, but should be able to play some big events and take his chances. Current #1 Pavel Kutuzov has assented to be his doubles partner. That won't hurt. 1(M). Me. Right at 35k points with Nevstar slowly gaining, 3k+ behind. My total slightly recovered with a gain of about 700 pts. this year. Probably will continue to slowly rise as long as Dudwadkar and Mooljee can both hang near the top ... but that's going to be short-lived.