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9 Australian males, led by No.19 Alex de Minaur, are at present ranked contained in the world’s high 90 within the ATP Tour singles rankings.
Melbourne, Australia, 1 August 2023 | Leigh Rogers
John Fitzgerald, a former world No.1 doubles participant and a nine-time Grand Slam champion, is thrilled to see the “spectacular” depth in Australian males’s tennis.
There are at present 9 Australian males ranked contained in the world’s high 90 in singles, led by world No.19 Alex de Minaur.
Seven Australian males have additionally received Grand Slam doubles titles previously 18 months.
“It’s fairly wonderful,” Fitzgerald advised tennis.com.au.
“I believe it’s a simple factor to evaluate harshly, as a result of our historical past has been so profitable, particularly manner again within the 60s, 70s. However the recreation is extra world now, so to have 9 males contained in the world’s high 100 is sort of excellent.
“Not too way back, we additionally had the No.1 ladies on the earth. So, for a small nation – despite the fact that we’re traditionally a tennis nation – it’s spectacular.”
Solely the USA and France boast extra top-100 gamers within the newest ATP Tour males’s singles rankings (every with 11 gamers).
Two Australian males – Max Purcell and Aleksandar Vukic – have recorded top-100 singles breakthroughs in latest months.
The 25-year-old Purcell entered the highest 100 in March and peaked at world No.62 in June.
Vukic, a 27-year-old who broke into the top-100 in Could, now sits at a career-high world No.62 after reaching his first tour-level ultimate in Atlanta final week.
Rinky Hijikata is verging on a top-100 debut as properly, with the 22-year-old at present at a career-high world No.110.
“It’s related to notice that loads of these gamers are later builders,” mentioned Fitzgerald.
“They didn’t set the world on hearth when they’re juniors, however that’s usually the case.”
As a former Australian Davis Cup captain, Fitzgerald doesn’t envy Lleyton Hewitt’s daunting activity of choosing a five-member crew for subsequent month’s Davis Cup Finals group stage.
Again in 2010, throughout Fitzgerald’s ultimate yr on the helm of the crew, Hewitt was Australia’s sole top-100 singles participant.
“The job of the captain is to choose the fellows that they assume are the best mixture,” Fitzgerald mentioned.
“It’s higher off to have 9 top-100 gamers (to select from) quite than two. It’s an excellent downside to have.”
The Australian Davis Cup crew recorded a runner-up end in 2022, the nation’s finest end in 19 years.
The Aussie crew’s 2023 marketing campaign begins with round-robin clashes in opposition to host nation Nice Britain, France and Switzerland at Manchester from 12-17 September.
Nice Britain at present has 4 top-100 singles gamers, whereas Switzerland has two.
Guide on-line, play right now: Go to play.tennis.com.au to get out on court docket and have some enjoyable!
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