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Old 05-25-2017, 01:21 AM   #614
Brian Swartz
Grizzled Veteran
 
Join Date: May 2006
Top Players Rankings Update

1. Mateo Kaspar(FRA, 23) -- 17,240

Kaspar has rebounded very convincingly from his hiccup in the early hardcourt Masters, and now established himself as the clear, overwhelming favorite on any match, anywhere, any time, any opponent, any surface, any anything. He is an emperor among insects.

2. Prakash Mooljee(SRI, 28) -- 10,630

Mooljee continues to be by far the best of those insects. Every tournament Mateo won this spring, he beat Prakash in the final of. And in Madrid, there was even the upset. Consistency has him doing the very best he can be expected to, and surprisingly nobody has risen to approach him.

3. Johnny Browne(USA, 26) -- 7,250

Failure to defend his Wimbledon title, though of course he didn't play badly, has virtually assured that Browne will never rise higher than third.

4. Gillo Fangio(ITA, 24) -- 7,190

Definitely a missed Wimbledon opportunity. Fangio will probably still pass Browne soon, but anything short of #2 by year's end has to be a disappointment for him, and the only way that happens now is a very big finish.

5. Luc Janin(CAN, 25) -- 4,490

The schedule has been managed much better this year, but strangely consistent results still have not come. Janin's a mile way from threatening the top 4.

6. Ariel Borja(USA, 23) -- 4,380

Another guy looking forward to the summer and fall, hoping to erase the bad memory of what just transpired.

7. Khasan Zakirov(UZB, 29) -- 3,815

The same steady performer as ever. Zakirov is a sort of bellweather, a rite of passage for up-and-comers.

8. Juan de los Santos(ESP, 26) -- 3,710

Santos seems destined to always be mentioned as a competitor to Zakirov. Both are steady Top 10 players; never better than that, but rarely worse.

9. Martin Zarco(ESP, 23) -- 3,635

Very soon Spain will have a new standard-bearer. Zarco reached the quarterfinals or semis of all four big clay events. He's particularly inept on hardcourts, but has little to defend there.

10. Tomas Niklas(CZE, 28) -- 3,460

An old friend pops up for a bit just to say hello.

11. Tiosav Srbulovic(USA, 26) -- 3,425

12. Guus Dircx(NLD, 22) -- 3,360

Dircx left a round earlier at Wimbledon this year so he slips a bit. And time of course is on his side. Overall his showing in big events is little different than last year; the late-season Masters in particular are an opportunity for him to step up and get back into the Top 10.

After this there is a bit of a gap.

14. Sigmund Kronecker(DEU, 24) -- 2,935

I've mentioned this still-improving German a few times; he's already up several positions this year. A clay specialist, Kronecker probably holds outside the Top 10 until next year but he's definitely becoming more of a force.'

21. Shreya Ujjaval(SRI, 29) -- 1,725

Holding steady. He's had no big runs and no major disappointments. Does what's expected of him.

24. Davide Poilblan(FRA, 32) -- 1,570

Poilblan deserves credit for his longevity; there is nobody else at 30 or above right now in the Top 32.

48. Shyam Senepathy(SRI, 28) -- 920

Look what we have here. After I concluded to start the year that he'd never make it, Senepathy finally cracks the Top 50. Good for him.

55. Ritwik Dudwadkar(SRI, 22) -- 807

A career high, and he's got opportunities in front of him. Another 'plus' challenger next week, a pair of tier-1s when the next set of Masters roll around ... if he's in form for the next month or so Dudwadkar will surge into the Top 50. He stands at 10 Challenger-level titles and will need to add quite a few more by year's end to push into the Top-32. He really should make it, but I've learned not to expect too much from him.

146(J). Sushant Chiba

Holding pretty steady, and starting to hold his own against Top 200 juniors as well. I think there's a good spot in the schedule for his first tier-3 in a couple of weeks, and he's just now got his skill/service balance to where it needs to be going forward as well. I like the synergy of how that whole training process has worked out the first year and a half for him. I think I've found the blueprint I want to follow, even though Chiba's cement feet do still limit him. Either way, he will gain very little from further tier-4 events. It's time to see if he's ready to move up.

1(Mgr). 35.6k pts. Still a few thousand up on Kaspar's manager, though that will eventually change. Really need Dudwadkar to start pulling his weight so that I can at least keep treading water.
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