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Brian Swartz · 03-15-2017, 03:09 PM

Rankings Update

1. Prakash Mooljee(26, SRI) -- 12,480

The Miami title gives Prakash 14 Masters, tying him with Runer for 8th all-time. Just this week he moved up to 7th on the list for weeks on #1, with 134. Kaspar moving up is in one way actually good for him -- he'll avoid what is now the world's best player until the finals, and he's the only player who has the luxury of that guarantee.

2. Mateo Kaspar(22, FRA) -- 8,970

There's no reason to expect the Miami loss that should have been a win against Janin to be anything but a minor hiccup. The only question is when he takes over at the top. My guess is somewhere in the Wimbledon - US Open window. I'd be very surprised if it didn't happen before year's end.

3. Tomas Niklas(27, CZE) -- 8,330

Niklas slides a spot, and more are coming; he's objectively only 5th or 6th best and I'd expect that to shake out by the end of the year. A fine career, but it looks like he'll be stuck on 1 Slam and 2 Masters. Very good ... but not good enough to be a real threat to Mooljee.

4. Gillo Fangio(23, ITA) -- 7,760

Fangio has definitely cooled off after the way he played last fall, but he's still set to move up to #3 soon which is where he should be. He's not playing terribly, just not as well as he was.

5. Johnny Browne(25, USA) -- 6,260

Bounced back from a slow start by making the Miami semifinals. He'll still be in the mix at least until it's time to defend his dramatic USO title.

6. Luc Janin(24, CAN) -- 6,085

Hasn't won any of the big events so far, but a semi and two runner-up finishes is nothing to shake a stick at. Still looks like he's on the way to 4th at worst, and sooner rather than later.

7. Khasan Zakirov(27, UZB) -- 4,980

Zakirov looks like he's in no man's land really. Better than anyone trailing him, not as good as those above him. Second-week fixture and likely WTF participant, but more than that is unlikely. The upset of Fangio in Miami will probably go down as one of his best moments.

8. Juan de los Santos(25, ESP) -- 4,455

Santos hasn't been able to back up his hardcourt success last fall in the new year, but he'll definitely be a factor as the tour shifts to the clay now.

9. Girish Girsh(31, SRI) -- 3,715

The predictable but unfortunate overplaying by a roughly average new manager has begun. And he was on his way down anyway.

10. Kire Zopp(25, FIN) -- 3,405

Crashing the first page, however briefly, Zopp is turning me into a liar again. I said he'd gone as high as he was going to when he was 12th at the start of the year. Tiosav Srbulovic has abdicated(down to 13th already) as much as anything, but still a job well done by the overacheiving Finn.

12. Phillippe Besson -- The top Swiss continues to waste no time. Could see him overtake Zopp in the months to come.

18. Guus Dirickx -- Only 21, but still climbing.

33. Anil Mehul -- Sliding to the very edge of the elite group ... but that's singles. In doubles, he's now 32nd, a Sri Lanka record. It's inconsistent; his partnership with Kroese led to a first-round exit in Miami but the final in Indian Wells. They aren't getting seeded yet, but that'll happen soon. No question that after this year he'll be taking on a doubles-focused schedule.

83. Ritwik Dudwadkar -- The usual pair of challenger wins during the Masters got him moving upward again. He's had a couple of practice matches against guys in the 20-30 range recently, and been competitive at best. Not ready for that level of play yet. He'll take several weeks off before doing the same routine during some of the big clay events. Schedule for the next few months is pretty much set and he'll continue to gradually move up ... the key will be how he finishes the year.

1017(J). Sushant Chiba -- Should be ready to starting winning more at the lowest levels of junior events soon. As expected, he appears to be slightly behind Dudwadkar's pace in terms of technical development.

03-15-2017, 03:09 PM	#590
Brian Swartz Grizzled Veteran Join Date: May 2006	Rankings Update 1. Prakash Mooljee(26, SRI) -- 12,480 The Miami title gives Prakash 14 Masters, tying him with Runer for 8th all-time. Just this week he moved up to 7th on the list for weeks on #1, with 134. Kaspar moving up is in one way actually good for him -- he'll avoid what is now the world's best player until the finals, and he's the only player who has the luxury of that guarantee. 2. Mateo Kaspar(22, FRA) -- 8,970 There's no reason to expect the Miami loss that should have been a win against Janin to be anything but a minor hiccup. The only question is when he takes over at the top. My guess is somewhere in the Wimbledon - US Open window. I'd be very surprised if it didn't happen before year's end. 3. Tomas Niklas(27, CZE) -- 8,330 Niklas slides a spot, and more are coming; he's objectively only 5th or 6th best and I'd expect that to shake out by the end of the year. A fine career, but it looks like he'll be stuck on 1 Slam and 2 Masters. Very good ... but not good enough to be a real threat to Mooljee. 4. Gillo Fangio(23, ITA) -- 7,760 Fangio has definitely cooled off after the way he played last fall, but he's still set to move up to #3 soon which is where he should be. He's not playing terribly, just not as well as he was. 5. Johnny Browne(25, USA) -- 6,260 Bounced back from a slow start by making the Miami semifinals. He'll still be in the mix at least until it's time to defend his dramatic USO title. 6. Luc Janin(24, CAN) -- 6,085 Hasn't won any of the big events so far, but a semi and two runner-up finishes is nothing to shake a stick at. Still looks like he's on the way to 4th at worst, and sooner rather than later. 7. Khasan Zakirov(27, UZB) -- 4,980 Zakirov looks like he's in no man's land really. Better than anyone trailing him, not as good as those above him. Second-week fixture and likely WTF participant, but more than that is unlikely. The upset of Fangio in Miami will probably go down as one of his best moments. 8. Juan de los Santos(25, ESP) -- 4,455 Santos hasn't been able to back up his hardcourt success last fall in the new year, but he'll definitely be a factor as the tour shifts to the clay now. 9. Girish Girsh(31, SRI) -- 3,715 The predictable but unfortunate overplaying by a roughly average new manager has begun. And he was on his way down anyway. 10. Kire Zopp(25, FIN) -- 3,405 Crashing the first page, however briefly, Zopp is turning me into a liar again. I said he'd gone as high as he was going to when he was 12th at the start of the year. Tiosav Srbulovic has abdicated(down to 13th already) as much as anything, but still a job well done by the overacheiving Finn. 12. Phillippe Besson -- The top Swiss continues to waste no time. Could see him overtake Zopp in the months to come. 18. Guus Dirickx -- Only 21, but still climbing. 33. Anil Mehul -- Sliding to the very edge of the elite group ... but that's singles. In doubles, he's now 32nd, a Sri Lanka record. It's inconsistent; his partnership with Kroese led to a first-round exit in Miami but the final in Indian Wells. They aren't getting seeded yet, but that'll happen soon. No question that after this year he'll be taking on a doubles-focused schedule. 83. Ritwik Dudwadkar -- The usual pair of challenger wins during the Masters got him moving upward again. He's had a couple of practice matches against guys in the 20-30 range recently, and been competitive at best. Not ready for that level of play yet. He'll take several weeks off before doing the same routine during some of the big clay events. Schedule for the next few months is pretty much set and he'll continue to gradually move up ... the key will be how he finishes the year. 1017(J). Sushant Chiba -- Should be ready to starting winning more at the lowest levels of junior events soon. As expected, he appears to be slightly behind Dudwadkar's pace in terms of technical development. Last edited by Brian Swartz : 03-15-2017 at 03:09 PM.