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The two-week period that covered the 2023 US Open was an exciting yet exhausting time for many on the ATP Tour. Yet following the conclusion of the men’s singles event on September 10th, there wasn’t much time to dwell on what went down in New York. And that’s because the ATP Tour jumped straight into Davis Cup action just two days later, and this is the main event that was played last week.
For those who don’t know, the Davis Cup is the most exciting team event of the season. As for the nations involved last week, a total of 16 nations competed around the world in a set of 4 groups (4 in each group). This was the final section of the group stages for the 2023 Davis Cup event, and naturally, a great deal of national pride was on the line for the players involved. However, no ATP rankings points are awarded for Davis Cup action, which might surprise many.
Therefore, the ATP rankings update that you are about to see is almost purely influenced by the various ATP Challenger events that were played around the world last week. This is completely different from the WTA rankings updates released today, as these updates were influenced by four WTA-sanctioned tournaments that were played last week.
Anyway, for that reason, there hasn’t been any great movement for players inside the top 50 in the ATP rankings. Yet for players ranked from 51-100, there have been some significant shifts that I would like to bring to your attention right now.
ATP rankings updates – week commencing September 18th
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As mentioned above, there were no ATP-level events played and completed over the previous seven days. However, the ATP Tour is seldom absent of any action at all. And on that note, I can tell you that a total of five ATP Challenger events were played between the 11th and 17th of September. Sure, these events don’t carry the same prestige and available points as the ATP-sanctioned events, but they are still important for players lower down the pack. And as you are about to find out, the players involved in such events have made the previous seven days count as far as the ATP rankings are concerned.
The week’s biggest climbers
I’ve focused on the three biggest climbers in the ATP rankings this week to keep things specific and relevant, and you can see these players below.
Federico Coria: +14
Let me start with a man who managed to win one of the Challenger events last week and subsequently rise by 14 spots – Federico Coria. By posting such a gain this week, Coria is the official climber of the week, and he is now ranked 82 in the world. He managed to win a Challenger in Poland last week, and the points earned are clearly quite valuable.
Rinky Hijikata: +10
Rinky Hijikata already enjoyed a boost concerning the ATP rankings following his exploits at the 2023 US Open. However, he kept the impressive tennis rolling on the Challenger circuit last week. The talented Aussie made the finals of a Challenger in the USA before losing to Svajda in a close three-setter. As a result, he is now ranked 72 in the world – a jump of 10 spots from the previous week.
Benjamin Bonzi: +9
The third biggest riser of the week this week is Benjamin Bonzi. This 27-year-old from France returned to his home country to compete in a Challenger last week, and it would seem like this proved to be a great decision. Bonzi played some solid tennis to make the final without losing a set, but unfortunately, he was forced to retire through injury in the final. Anyway, thanks to this run to the final, Bonzi has climbed to 93 in the world – a jump of 9 positions.
The week’s biggest fallers
It’s been a decent week of tennis for the three guys mentioned in the ‘biggest climbers’ section. But what about the guys who haven’t fared too well over the previous seven days? Well, I’ve highlighted these individuals too.
Michael Mmoh: -13
Michael Mmoh is the week’s biggest faller in the ATP rankings for the period running from September 11th to 17th. After his big wins in New York, Mmoh has taken a break from the ATP Tour, and he dropped points as a result. Specifically, Mmoh has now slid down the ATP rankings by 13 positions as of today’s updates, and he now finds himself back at 94 in the rankings.
Dominik Koepfer: -7
Remember Dominik Koepfer’s courageous performance against Carlos Alcaraz in the first round of the US Open? The German player competed against the Spaniard on Arthur Ashe in the opening night session, and sadly, he was clearly hindered by injury. Nevertheless, he battled through before being forced to retire in the middle of the second set. And with the injury seemingly quite severe, it’s no surprise that Koepfer hasn’t competed since. Because of this, he has fallen by 7 spots down to 79.
Dominic Thiem: -7
Joining Dominik Koepfer in the ATP rankings slide this week we have Dominic Thiem. The Austrian has also fallen by 7 positions on the previous week, and his ranking now sits at 80 in the world. Interestingly, just like Koepfer above, Thiem sustained an injury at the 2023 US Open too, which forced him to retire against Ben Shelton in his second-round match.
Top ATP rankings story – Davis Cup final eight officially set
Since there isn’t any huge ATP rankings story that has emerged this week, I’ve chosen to share the latest details of the Davis Cup. After all, this was the event that attracted the world’s best to display their skills last week. And following a series of thrilling contests between the best in the business, we now know exactly which nations have made the Davis Cup quarter-finals. To be specific, I’ve listed the eight nations that have made it right here:
- Canada
- Italy
- Great Britain
- Australia
- Czech Republic
- Serbia
- Finland
- Netherlands
These teams all managed to qualify through their respective groups last week. Subsequently, all of these teams will compete in the Davis Cup quarter-finals, which are scheduled for November 21st – 26th.
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