Top 10 Improved Players of the Season

It has been a season full of surprises in the year of 2017 as far as tennis is concerned. We have had two new grand slam champions and three first time finalists at the majors. Not to mention a new world number one in the women’s division and the return of Rafael Nadal to the world number one position. However, today we take a look at some of the players who have improved the most in the 2017 season. Here is the list for the top ten most improved players in 2017.

1. Caroline Garcia

Caroline Garcia, who started her campaign at the Australian open as the 21 seed, has had a successful season in 2017. She won her first ever-Asian premier double, capturing titles at the Wuhan open as well as the China open. In doing so, she became the first WTA player to win both the tournaments in the same year. She also broke into the top ten, and in the process qualified for her first ever WTA finals tournament. She takes the tenth spot in our list of top ten most improved players of the season.

1. Diego Schwartzman

This young Argentine might not look imposing, but he is one heck of a player. Standing at 5’7 feet, Diego Schwartzman has won Argentina’s player of the year award. He reached a career high ranking of no.25 this year. He also made it to his first ever quarterfinals of a major at the US open, beating Marin Cilic and Lucas Pouille in the process. He became the shortest player to reach a grand slam quarterfinal since 1994. The young Argentine also made it to his third ATP finals. “It’s not just for the big guys here”, said Schwartzman. Well, we hear you Diego! Diego Schwartzman is ninth on our list of most improved players.

1. Pablo Carreño Busta

The Spaniard has had a successful 2017, reaching his first ever grand slam quarterfinal at the French open, ousting Grigor Dimitrov and Milos Raonic en route. He also made it to the semi-finals of the US open taking complete advantage of the long injury list. It was his first ever major semi-final. He also appeared in his first ever year-end ATP world tour finals and reached a career high in the ATP rankings. Sitting pretty at the tenth spot in the ATP singles rankings, Pablo Carreño Busta takes the eighth spot on our list.

1. Andrey Rublev

The young Russian has had a breakout year in 2017, winning his first ever ATP singles title, at the Croatian Open, ousting the defending champion Fabio Fognini in the process. Rublev also reached the quarterfinals of the US open in 2017, stunning the likes of Grigor Dimitrov and David Goffin. However, his dream run was put to a stop as he ran into the eventual champion Rafael Nadal. After qualifying for the Next Gen ATP finals, he put up a fantastic display of tennis to reach the finals, where he lost to Hyeon Chung. Andrey Rublev is number seven on our list of most improved players of the season.

1. Garbine Muguruza

Garbine Muguruza has had a dream year in the 2017 season, as she reached a career high ranking of world number one. She is only the second Spaniard to do so. She also had a rewarding run at the Wimbledon championships, where she won the title. She defeated Venus Williams in the finals, and became the first player ever to beat both, Serena and Venus Williams, in a grand slam singles finals. She also reached the fourth round of the US open for the first time, and it was here that she secured her world number one position. The Spaniard is sixth on our list.

1. Alexander Zverev

Alexander Zverev, started his campaign at the Australian open, where he put up a phenomenal display of tennis against Rafael Nadal, before going down in five sets. He won his first ever ATP masters title in Italy, as he defeated Novak Djokovic  in the finals of the tournament. Zverev won his second masters title soon after, at the Canadian open, beating Roger Federer in the finals. As a result, he moved upto world number seven, becoming the highest ranked German since 2004. Zverev also qualified for the ATP world tour finals for the first time, and also reached a career high of world number four. Zverev is our fifth most improved player of the season.

1. Denis Shapovalov

Denis Shapovalov, has impressed players and spectators alike, with his flamboyant style of play and his vicious one-handed backhand. The Canadian has won the award for his country as the player of the year. He shocked the Spaniard Rafael Nadal, at the Rogers Cup, as he defeated him in three high-level sets. It was the first time ever he squared off against a top ten player. Shapovalov stands on number four in our list of most improved players of the season.

1. David Goffin

The Belgian became the first player ever from his country to reach the ATP world tour finals. He beat Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer en route to the finals of the ATP world tour finals, where he lost to the champion Grigor Dimitrov. David Goffin broke into the top ten and is currently the world number seven in the singles rankings. The Belgian also led his country to the Davis cup finals for the second time in his career. He was also the first Belgian player to break into the top ten of the men’s singles rankings. David Goffin is our third most improved player of the season.

1. Grigor Dimitrov

Grigor Dimitrov was the stand out player of the season, apart from the duo of Roger-Rafa. The Bulgarian started his season as the world number 17, and is currently ranked the world number three in the ATP singles rankings. It is the highest he has ever reached in his career. Dimitrov was the first Bulgarian to qualify for the year-end ATP world tour finals. He defeated David Goffin in the finals to clinch his first ATP finals trophy. It was a sweet year for him in the masters’ tournaments as well, as he won his first masters’ trophy at the Cincinnati masters. The Bulgarian is number two on our list.

1. Jelena Ostapenko

Jelena Ostapenko takes the cherry on the cake as she comes first on our list of most improved players of the season. The Latvian won her maiden title at the Roland Garros, defeating Simona Halep in the finals. In doing so she became the first Latvian player to win a major. She was also the first unseeded player to win the French open since Gustavo Kuerten. The title saw her reach a career high ranking of number 12. She continued her good form as she won her second title in Seoul and also reached the semifinals of the China open. In doing so she qualified for the WTA finals for the first time. She is currently sitting pretty as the world number seven in the WTA singles rankings.