Jannik Sinner achieved the greatest success of his career at the 2024 Australian Open by winning his first Grand Slam title. Sinner is only 22 years old and we should expect more great results from him in the coming seasons. In this article, we will look at several up and coming players who may soon find themselves at the top of the world rankings.
Dino Prižmić
Novak Djokovic competed against the yourg Croation, Dino Prižmić, in the first round of the 2024 Australian Open. Prižmic, at just 18 yearsold, fought hard against the 36 years-old Djokovic. Prižmic even won a set against Djokovic before eventually losing 6-2, 6-7 (7-5), 6-3, 6-4. Last year, Prižmić won the French Open Junior Championships.
Credit: ATP Tour
Last season, Prižmic achieved his first victory on the ATP Tour, which he achieved at the Croatia Open, where he reached the quarterfinals. In October 2023, he defeated Jiri Lehecka at the Stockholm Open, and it was his biggest victory to date. He had the best possible debut at a Grand Slam taking on Novak in Melbourne in a match that lasted four hours, the longest first round match ever for Djokovic. Prižmić, who is currently ranked #169 in the world, should enter the Top 100 this year if he continues to play up to his full potential.
Hamad Medjedovic
FUN FACT: The ATP Next Gen Finals is a tournament that has been held since 2017 at the end of the season and is open to under the age of 21 who have shown great potential during the year. Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have each previously won this tournament.
The ATP Next Gen Finals is scheduled to be played in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia until 2027. Last year’s tournament was won by Hamad Medjedovic, of Serbia. Novak Djokovic has recognized the talent of this young Serbian player and has even supported him financially. Medjedovic failed to qualify for the 2024 Australian Open, but he made his debut at the 2023 French Open and Wimbledon, where he was eliminated in the first round at both tournaments. Currently ranked #107 in the world, he is very close to making the top 100.
Credit: ATP Tour
Arthur Fils
In the finals of the 2023 Next Gen Finals, Medjedovic defeated Arthur Fils, a French player who is only 19 years-old. Fils is currently ranked #36 in the world. Last year, Fils won his first ATP title by defeating Francisco Cerundolo at the Lyon Open.
Credit: JB Autissier/Panoramic
FUN FACT: In the 2017 ATP Next Gen Finals, Hyeon Chung defeated Andrey Rublev. The Korean player confirmed that he has enormous talent at the start of the following year when he defeated Novak Djokovic at the 2018 Australian Open, where he went on to reach the semi-finals. Unfortunately, he has struggled with injuries and is currently ranked outside the top 1,000.
Arthur Cazaux
As one of the alternatives at last year’s ATP Next Gen Finals was another French player named Arthur. Arthur Cazaux received a wild card to participate in the 2024 Australian Open in Melbourne, where he incredibly reached the fourth round. He played great matches against Holger Rune and Tallon Griekspoor, defeating them both. The 21-year-old French player’s performance in the Australian Open propelled him to a current ranking of #80 in the world.
Credit: ATP Tour
Luca Van Assche
On the list of talented players expected to shine is another French player, Luca Van Assche. Like Fils, he is only 19 years old. It is interesting that in addition to playing tennis, he is also studying mathematics. Last year, by winning the title at the Sanremo Challenger at the beginning of April, he entered the Top 100 when he was just 18 years-old. Last season, he debuted at all four Grand Slam tournaments, and this year at the Australian Open he was eliminated in the third round after defeating Lorenzo Musetti.
Credit: ATP Tour
Alex Michelsen
Alex Michelsen is another 19-year-old with great expectations. Michelsen, from the United States, also reached the best ranking of his career after the Australian Open. Like Van Assche, he also made it to the third round, and he did so by defeating Jiri Lehecka. He is currently ranked #68 in the world.
Credit: Getty
Flavio Cobolli
A 21 years-old Italian player, Flavio Cobolli, broke into the top 80 in the world after the Australian Open. He too was eliminated in the third round. His curernt ranking is #71 in the world.
Credit: Mattia Martegani
Lorenzo Claverie
You heard it hear first! Watch out for Lorenzo Claverie. The 6 foot, 5 inches tall, 21 years-old Italian is a major force. I had the opportunity to watch him and he is a dominant player with an incredibly bright future. I am very excited to see what he accomplishes in 2024! He has been steadily climbing the world rankings and is currently ranked #661 in the world.
