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Brian Swartz · 04-21-2018, 06:31 PM

2058 Top Player Rankings

1. Mateo Kaspar(30, FRA) -- 14,910

King Kaspar lost six times last year, as many as he'd suffered in the previous four seasons combined. And still finished the year on top, claiming two Slams, three Masters, the Olympics, a second straight WTC, and the World Tour Finals. Now though the watch begins in earnest to see how long he remains there. I think he's likely to stay on top this year, but it's no longer a sure thing.

2. Ritwik Dudwadkar(28, SRI) -- 13,910

I didn't realize until I looked back, but Dudwadkar actually won six Masters in a row(Miami through Cincinatti). Given that he'd acquired a total of just two Shields prior to this year, that was a heck of a thing. And still it wasn't quite enough. The best chance was probably in the RG semifinals, where he was even with Chinaglia after two tiebreaks and would have had a good chance in the final had he prevailed there. But with margins this small, one can really only celebrate that he did become #1 in the world ... even for just a couple weeks. Nobody else has yet been close to interrupting Kaspar's reign of terror. 88 wins on the year, 9 more than his previous high. That's often enough to be the best.

3. Karl Kaspar(24, FRA) -- 7,000

Prince Karl made the QFs or SFs pretty much everywhere, including a bronze in the Olympics, and then made the WTF final along with helping France defend their WTC title. Now he sets his sights on closing the considerable gap keeping him from being a legitimate challenger for #1.

4. Gilberto Chinaglia(26, ITA) -- 5,675

The Roland Garros champion made it to the quarters or better just twice in the rest of the big events. He'll either need to repeat or improve drastically on those other performances. This year could go either way; his improved seeding could aid him in gaining momentum, or(probably more likely) he could crash like a rock.

5. Dick Blake(26, USA) -- 5,190

6. Guus Dircx(28, NLD) -- 5,010

The long-time #3 made his move into doubles this year. I think it was early, but it's certainly understandable. Dircx will be best known for being a key member of the 'loyal opposition', and also for his lone RG title six years ago. It's time for him to say good-bye now as he falls through the rankings, and probably not particularly slowly.

7. Hsuang-tsung Teng(29, NZL) -- 4,895

Still hanging on as a danger, as he showed Ritwik in the WTF.

8. Gregory Mackenzie(27, USA) -- 3,980

A disappointing year as Blake was essentially left alone as the US standard-bearer.

9. Tristan Allende(24, USA) -- 3,660

Closest thing the crown Prince has to a rival, and Allende will of course have the backing of favorable crowds in multiple venues. It'll be curious to see whether he can do what Blake/Mackenzie/Pargeter have failed to do, and crack the Top 4 this year.

10. Cristian Castegali(26, MEX) -- 3,600

Just hanging out basically, and appears to be just past his best tennis.

11. Stuart Pargeter(26, USA) -- 3,435

Unquestionably the biggest disappointment, though I do think mostly it was likely a hard-luck case. Regardless, if he is to be relevant and fulfill his potential it needs to happen this year. The next two should be his best ... but will they be, or has his psyche been permanently damaged?

13. Kenneth Brasher(25, GBR)

Wasn't even on the radar last year. We'll see if he can back up that impressive rise.

14. Hamal Sbai(25, MOR)

I was close to writing him off, but a late-season bounce gained him several positions. Is Sbai ready to finally make good on his skills, or is this just a blip on the screen of a terminally-ill patient?

15. Veini Aikio(24, FIN)

Mid-20s last year; Finland's latest good-but-not-great player is pushing upwards.

16. Serge Cardone(26, FRA)

Almost exactly where he was last year, and many think he's gone as far as he can go.

17. Hugo Cordova(24, USA)

A second straight year of steady progression, from 30th to 24th and now another half-dozen or so spots. Hugo's still young; can he keep it up?

20. Prakash Mooljee(34, SRI)

Still the #2 in Sri Lanka's national efforts, but that probably will finally end in a few months.

21. Adam Hagans(23, GBR)

Another new Brit.

22. Lucas Kaspar(24, FRA)

Slowly ascending.

23. Chad Duncan(24, GBR)

There were no notable English players last year, and now they are three. Probably got sick of all the fun the Kaspars were having and decided to do something about it.

24. Sushant Chiba(22, SRI)

41st last year, so this is quality if unspectacular progress. Chiba particularly showed signs that he's getting over the hump against moderately higher-ranking players at the year's end with his showing in Paris(d. Chinaglia). He'll make his WTC doubles debut this week, and with any luck it won't be long until he does the same in singles. I would imagine Sushant has now passed his juniors nemesis(all of them) for good.

25. Esteban Cortina(25, ESP)

Spain at least is not completely gone.

27. Leo Kaspar(24, FRA)

Latest to join the throng from House Kaspar.

31. Stanley Edleman(22, USA)

No longer the most-accomplished player his age, Edleman actually drops two spots from a year ago. It's far too early to even consider writing him off though -- treading water isn't that unusual when breaking into the elite class. We haven't heard the last of Stanley.

32. Chalerm Prachuab(22, THA)

Also in that same junior class, he just took a little longer to get going as a pro. Despite his relative youth, Prachuab is already considered the top Thai player ever. His career-high of 30th equals the national record, one that is certain to fall before long.

36. Mike Rhodes(20, PHI)

Normally I stop at 32nd for the most part, but this is pretty unusual; knocking on the door before his 21st birthday. We'll need to take a closer look at this phenom.

Svajnovic and Bochette, other members of the Edleman juniors class, have dropped into the mid-40s. They may well be back, but they are off the radar screen for now.

389. Anil Mehul(42, SRI)

Continues to do well enough in doubles(223rd) to hang right around the 200 mark while gradually slipping in singles. The current training evaluation is 5.38. Continuing on pace for the expected 'high' 5.4 or 'low' 5.5 ending point, hopefully the latter, with just over two years to go. After this year, I need to be cautious in making sure I don't over-shoot the mark. If I get to 45 without enough xp in the bank to become a trainer, he just retires and I lose all the effort. That would be the stuff nightmares are made of, so caution will definitely be in order.

65(J). Amrik Kasaravalli(16, SRI)

Kasaravalli stayed at the JG4 level all last year and it ended up for the best as he didn't win his final few events. Endurance is still an issue. It's looking like a weak class with only two players ranked higher that are younger than Amrik right now.

Manager: 4th, 28.2k points. This has been staying steady for a while. Hugoboy, manager of the Kaspars, is over 50k but everyone else is pretty much in contact. And I expect to more or less tread water until Mehul is made into a trainer. Then things will get more interesting.

04-21-2018, 06:31 PM	#778
Brian Swartz Grizzled Veteran Join Date: May 2006	2058 Top Player Rankings 1. Mateo Kaspar(30, FRA) -- 14,910 King Kaspar lost six times last year, as many as he'd suffered in the previous four seasons combined. And still finished the year on top, claiming two Slams, three Masters, the Olympics, a second straight WTC, and the World Tour Finals. Now though the watch begins in earnest to see how long he remains there. I think he's likely to stay on top this year, but it's no longer a sure thing. 2. Ritwik Dudwadkar(28, SRI) -- 13,910 I didn't realize until I looked back, but Dudwadkar actually won six Masters in a row(Miami through Cincinatti). Given that he'd acquired a total of just two Shields prior to this year, that was a heck of a thing. And still it wasn't quite enough. The best chance was probably in the RG semifinals, where he was even with Chinaglia after two tiebreaks and would have had a good chance in the final had he prevailed there. But with margins this small, one can really only celebrate that he did become #1 in the world ... even for just a couple weeks. Nobody else has yet been close to interrupting Kaspar's reign of terror. 88 wins on the year, 9 more than his previous high. That's often enough to be the best. 3. Karl Kaspar(24, FRA) -- 7,000 Prince Karl made the QFs or SFs pretty much everywhere, including a bronze in the Olympics, and then made the WTF final along with helping France defend their WTC title. Now he sets his sights on closing the considerable gap keeping him from being a legitimate challenger for #1. 4. Gilberto Chinaglia(26, ITA) -- 5,675 The Roland Garros champion made it to the quarters or better just twice in the rest of the big events. He'll either need to repeat or improve drastically on those other performances. This year could go either way; his improved seeding could aid him in gaining momentum, or(probably more likely) he could crash like a rock. 5. Dick Blake(26, USA) -- 5,190 6. Guus Dircx(28, NLD) -- 5,010 The long-time #3 made his move into doubles this year. I think it was early, but it's certainly understandable. Dircx will be best known for being a key member of the 'loyal opposition', and also for his lone RG title six years ago. It's time for him to say good-bye now as he falls through the rankings, and probably not particularly slowly. 7. Hsuang-tsung Teng(29, NZL) -- 4,895 Still hanging on as a danger, as he showed Ritwik in the WTF. 8. Gregory Mackenzie(27, USA) -- 3,980 A disappointing year as Blake was essentially left alone as the US standard-bearer. 9. Tristan Allende(24, USA) -- 3,660 Closest thing the crown Prince has to a rival, and Allende will of course have the backing of favorable crowds in multiple venues. It'll be curious to see whether he can do what Blake/Mackenzie/Pargeter have failed to do, and crack the Top 4 this year. 10. Cristian Castegali(26, MEX) -- 3,600 Just hanging out basically, and appears to be just past his best tennis. 11. Stuart Pargeter(26, USA) -- 3,435 Unquestionably the biggest disappointment, though I do think mostly it was likely a hard-luck case. Regardless, if he is to be relevant and fulfill his potential it needs to happen this year. The next two should be his best ... but will they be, or has his psyche been permanently damaged? 13. Kenneth Brasher(25, GBR) Wasn't even on the radar last year. We'll see if he can back up that impressive rise. 14. Hamal Sbai(25, MOR) I was close to writing him off, but a late-season bounce gained him several positions. Is Sbai ready to finally make good on his skills, or is this just a blip on the screen of a terminally-ill patient? 15. Veini Aikio(24, FIN) Mid-20s last year; Finland's latest good-but-not-great player is pushing upwards. 16. Serge Cardone(26, FRA) Almost exactly where he was last year, and many think he's gone as far as he can go. 17. Hugo Cordova(24, USA) A second straight year of steady progression, from 30th to 24th and now another half-dozen or so spots. Hugo's still young; can he keep it up? 20. Prakash Mooljee(34, SRI) Still the #2 in Sri Lanka's national efforts, but that probably will finally end in a few months. 21. Adam Hagans(23, GBR) Another new Brit. 22. Lucas Kaspar(24, FRA) Slowly ascending. 23. Chad Duncan(24, GBR) There were no notable English players last year, and now they are three. Probably got sick of all the fun the Kaspars were having and decided to do something about it. 24. Sushant Chiba(22, SRI) 41st last year, so this is quality if unspectacular progress. Chiba particularly showed signs that he's getting over the hump against moderately higher-ranking players at the year's end with his showing in Paris(d. Chinaglia). He'll make his WTC doubles debut this week, and with any luck it won't be long until he does the same in singles. I would imagine Sushant has now passed his juniors nemesis(all of them) for good. 25. Esteban Cortina(25, ESP) Spain at least is not completely gone. 27. Leo Kaspar(24, FRA) Latest to join the throng from House Kaspar. 31. Stanley Edleman(22, USA) No longer the most-accomplished player his age, Edleman actually drops two spots from a year ago. It's far too early to even consider writing him off though -- treading water isn't that unusual when breaking into the elite class. We haven't heard the last of Stanley. 32. Chalerm Prachuab(22, THA) Also in that same junior class, he just took a little longer to get going as a pro. Despite his relative youth, Prachuab is already considered the top Thai player ever. His career-high of 30th equals the national record, one that is certain to fall before long. 36. Mike Rhodes(20, PHI) Normally I stop at 32nd for the most part, but this is pretty unusual; knocking on the door before his 21st birthday. We'll need to take a closer look at this phenom. Svajnovic and Bochette, other members of the Edleman juniors class, have dropped into the mid-40s. They may well be back, but they are off the radar screen for now. 389. Anil Mehul(42, SRI) Continues to do well enough in doubles(223rd) to hang right around the 200 mark while gradually slipping in singles. The current training evaluation is 5.38. Continuing on pace for the expected 'high' 5.4 or 'low' 5.5 ending point, hopefully the latter, with just over two years to go. After this year, I need to be cautious in making sure I don't over-shoot the mark. If I get to 45 without enough xp in the bank to become a trainer, he just retires and I lose all the effort. That would be the stuff nightmares are made of, so caution will definitely be in order. 65(J). Amrik Kasaravalli(16, SRI) Kasaravalli stayed at the JG4 level all last year and it ended up for the best as he didn't win his final few events. Endurance is still an issue. It's looking like a weak class with only two players ranked higher that are younger than Amrik right now. Manager: 4th, 28.2k points. This has been staying steady for a while. Hugoboy, manager of the Kaspars, is over 50k but everyone else is pretty much in contact. And I expect to more or less tread water until Mehul is made into a trainer. Then things will get more interesting.