Tennis in India is not as popular as cricket. But Indian tennis has been enjoying a good run of late. No doubt, the athletes have been neglected for many years. But thanks to their constant efforts, tennis is already set to be a revolution in the near future. In this article, we will explore the players who have achieved positions in the top 100 ATP rankings in the category of men’s singles since its inception in 1973. So Let's take a look at the 'Highest Ranked Indian Tennis Player'.

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Highest Ranked Indian Tennis Player

10. Jasjit Singh | 89

Jasjit Singh was the first Sikh player to represent the Indian Davis Cup team. Notably, India advanced to the final in his inaugural Davis Cup appearance. Furthermore, he finished second in the 1975 Australian Open and the 1969 US Open. Jasjit achieved the world ranking of 89 in the men’s singles category on June 3, 1974.

9. Yuki Bhambri | 83

Yuki Bhambri achieved the junior no. 1 ranking in February 2009. During the same year, he secured the Junior Australian Open Boys singles title, thus becoming the fourth Indian in history to achieve such a feat at a Grand Slam championship. In 2015, Bhambri achieved a significant milestone by entering the top 100 ranking in the men’s singles division.

After that, Yuki qualified for the 2015 Australian Open, losing to Andy Murray in the first round. On April 16, 2018, Yuki reached his highest men’s singles ranking, attaining the 83rd position. In 2018, Yuki reached the third-round of the Indian Wells Masters and second round in the Miami Open, both was prestigious ATP Masters 1000 events.

8. Prajnesh Gunneswaran | 75

Prajnesh Gunneswaran turned professional towards the end of 2018. Entering the 2018 season ranked at 243, he consistently performed well, finishing the season with a career-best ranking of 104. On February 11, 2019, Prajnesh achieved a significant milestone by entering the top 100 ranking in the men’s singles division for the first time in his career. Prajnesh attained his highest career ranking of 75 on April 22, 2019. His most notable accomplishment remains the winning of a bronze medal at the 2018 Asian Games.

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7. Anand Amritraj | 74

Vijay Amritraj’s younger brother Anand Amritraj has a win-loss record of 195-170. Anand secured seven singles titles throughout his career. He also contributed to India’s 1987 Davis Cup team, which advanced to the final. On November 6, 1974, he attained his highest ranking in the men’s singles division, reaching the 74th position. His most notable performance in a Grand Slam was reaching the third round of the US Open in 1974.

6. Leander Paes | 73

Leander Paes has emerged victorious in 101 matches throughout his career. His most notable performance in a Grand Slam tournament occurred in 1997, when he advanced to the third round of the US Open. Moreover, his highest singles ranking was 73. He reached that position on October 24, 1998. Leander has clinched eight Grand Slam titles in men’s doubles and 10 in the mixed doubles category.

5. Sashi Menon | 71

Sashi Menon actively participated in over 700 matches from 1970 to 1984, 15 years of his career. With a career win percentage of 46.4%, he secured four singles titles. His highest ranking in the men’s singles division was 71, achieved on October 21, 1975. 

4. Sumit Nagal | 71 

The 4th Indian men’s singles player to enter the highest ranked Indian tennis player list is Sumit Nagal. He achieved this milestone on June 17, 2024, by finishing runner-up at the Perugia ATP Challenger tournament. This performance moved him 6 spots up in the rankings. Nagal was ranked 77th last week. 

In 2024, Nagal made it to the second round of the Australian Open. He also won the men's singles title at the Heilbronn Neckarcup 2024 Challenger event in Germany in June and the Chennai Open in February. Nagal has won four ATP Challenger titles since 2023 and Heilbronn was his fourth title on clay.

Also Read: Sumit Nagal reaches highest ranking of his career ahead of Wimbledon 2024

3. Somdev Devvarman | 62

Somdev Devvarman did not attain any accolades in Grand Slam tournaments, but he secured a gold medal in the men’s singles event at both the 2010 Commonwealth Games and the 2010 Asian Games. On July 25, 2011, Devvarman achieved his career-high ranking, reaching 62nd in the ATP Men’s Singles. Regarding his ATP titles, he attained two runner-up titles in the ATP World Tour 250 series.

2. Ramesh Krishnan | 23

Ramesh Krishnan emerged as a notable figure in the world of tennis during the era of Vijay Amritraj. With a career win-loss record of 319-285, Ramesh attained his highest individual ranking of 23 in the men’s singles category on January 28, 1985. His most notable performances at Grand Slam events include reaching the quarterfinals twice at the US Open and once at Wimbledon. Additionally, he was part of the Indian team that advanced to the Davis Cup final in 1987 and also secured eight ATP 250 series titles throughout his career.

1. Vijay Amritraj | 18

The leading figure in men’s singles tennis in India is Vijay Amritraj. Throughout his illustrious 23-year professional career, he achieved a win-loss record of 399-308. On July 7, 1980, he reached his career-high ranking of 18, a record that still stands as the highest ranked Indian tennis player in the men’s singles category. Furthermore, his notable Grand Slam performances include two quarter-final finishes at Wimbledon and the US Open.

Novak Djokovic moved one win closer to capturing a record-equalling eighth Wimbledon title when he ended 25th seed Lorenzo Musetti's dream in straight sets and sought revenge on defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in the final. Novak Djokovic vs Carlos Alcaraz match will be the rematch of last year's final which the Spaniard won in five sets.

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If the 37-year-old Serbian wins a record-tying 25th major on Sunday, he will become the oldest champion in Wimbledon history. Djokovic, leading Alcaraz 3-2 in the ATP head2head series, will be eager to avenge that defeat and equal Roger Federer's record eight Wimbledon crowns.

Novak Djokovic vs Carlos Alcaraz Match Info

• Men's Singles Final: July 14, Sunday
• Venue: AELTC Wimbledon Qualifying and Community Sports Ground
• Location: London, England
• Court Surface: Grass

Novak Djokovic vs Carlos Alcaraz head-to-head

Novak Djokovic vs Carlos Alcaraz: Form against each other

In the past two years against one another, Djokovic has three wins and Alcaraz has one. In their last match, on November 18, 2023, Djokovic won 6-3, 6-2. Djokovic has clinched nine sets against Alcaraz (64.3%), while Alcaraz has taken five. In 136 total games against one another, Djokovic has taken 77, while Alcaraz has claimed 59. When going head-to-head, Alcaraz and Djokovic have averaged 34 games and 3.5 sets in their four matches against each other.

Djokovic's 2024 performance

Djokovic has captured zero tournament victories on the year, with an overall record of 16-6. In 2024, Djokovic hasn't yet played a match on grass. He is averaging 27.3 games per match (33.2 in best-of-five matches) through his 22 matches played this year across all court surfaces, posting a 57.7% game-winning percentage. Djokovic has put up a service game-winning percentage of 82.1% on all surfaces (247-for-301 in service games) and a return game-winning percentage of 33.1% (99-for-299 in return games).

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Alcaraz's 2024 performance

Alcaraz has won two of his nine tournaments this year, with an overall match record of 32-6. He has a match record of 7-1 on grass courts so far this year. Alcaraz has competed in 38 matches this year (across all court types), and 26.6 games per match (34.4 in best-of-five matches). The World No. 3 has won 35.6% of his return games this year, while also winning 83.5% of his service games.

Indian tennis star Sumit Nagal on Monday continued his improvement in the ATP singles rankings and reached the 71st position, the highest ranking of his career.

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Sumit Nagal, who was preparing for the Paris Olympics 2024, was ranked 77th last week. He managed to move up six places by finishing runner-up at the Perugia ATP Challenger tournament. Nagal now has 777 ATP points.

Nagal surpasses Leander Paes

Sumit Nagal also goes past Leander Paes by becoming the joint-fourth highest-ranked Indian man in ATP Rankings history. Paes had a career-high singles ranking of 73 in 1998. Ahead of Nagal and Menon, who were ranked 71st in the world in 1975, are Somdev Devvarman (62), Ramesh Krishnan (23), and Vijay Amritraj (18).

Only Indian to make it to the Paris Olympics in men's singles

By performing well recently, Sumit Nagal not only improved his ranking but also managed to secure a place in the men's singles of the Olympic Games. He is the only Indian player to make it into the men's singles draw of the Paris Olympics.

Nagal won Heilbronn Neckarcup 2024 Challenger event

Nagal made it to the second round of the Australian Open at the beginning of the year but was eliminated in the first round at the French Open. Matches in the Paris Games will also be held at Roland Garros where the French Open is played.

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Nagal had won the men's singles title at the Heilbronn Neckarcup 2024 Challenger event in Germany earlier this month and the Chennai Open in February. Nagal, who is currently the best-ranked Indian singles player, has won four ATP Challenger titles since 2023 and Heilbronn was his fourth title on clay.

World No. 4 doubles tennis player Rohan Bopanna secured an automatic quota place for the Paris Olympics 2024 through his ATP rankings in doubles on Tuesday.

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Bopanna maintained his position in top 10

Rohan Bopanna represented India in the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympics but missed out on a place at the Tokyo Olympics. He secured the quota for India by maintaining his position in the top 10 in the doubles rankings since November last year. 

The 44-year-old Rohan Bopanna won the Australian Open Grand Slam at the beginning of the year and reached the semi-finals of the French Open last week.

Rohan Bopanna will reportedly partner with world no 67 Sriram Balaji for the 2024 Olympics.

Each country can achieve a maximum of four quotas

64 players each will participate in the men's and women's singles events at Paris 2024. According to the ATP rankings released on June 10, the top 56 men's singles players have secured quotas for their respective countries. However, each country can achieve a maximum of four quotas.

The men's and women's doubles draw at Paris 2024 will consist of 32 teams, with one team being a pair of athletes from the same country, i.e. a maximum of two teams from each country.

The tennis qualification window for Paris 2024 ended on Monday. National Olympic Committees have until June 19 to confirm the use of their quota.

Sumit Nagal made the cut a day before

India's Sumit Nagal has also secured quota places for the Paris Games a day before. Nagal made the cut-off after rising 18 places in the singles rankings last week, according to Olympics.com, making him the last player to earn a quota through the world rankings.

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Nagal, who was ranked 95th last week, achieved his career-high ranking of 77th after winning the ATP Challenger title at the Heilbronn Challenger Cup in Germany on Sunday. He defeated Switzerland's world number 184 Alexander Ritschard 6-1, 6-7, 6-3 to clinch the title.

Although Nagal is ranked 77th, he is last among the eligible players to get quota through world rankings.

Fifth-ranked Alexander Zverev defeated Chile's Alejandro Tabilo 1-6, 7-6, 6-2 to reach the Italian Open tennis final. In the final, he will face Chile's Nicolas Jarry, who defeated Tommy Paul 6-3, 6-7, 6-3. 

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With this win, Alexander Zverev equalled compatriot Boris Becker’s record for the most Masters finals by a German since the series began in 1990.

This is Alexander Zverev's third final in Rome. He won his first Masters Series title in 2017 by defeating Novak Djokovic. A year later, he lost to Rafael Nadal.

Third seed Zverev looked like he would become the latest high-ranking victim of an unusual men’s tournament when he was battered in a sensational opening set.

But Zverev battled back and after coming through a tight second set his class eventually showed, making the final at the Foro Italico for the third time.

“I was just hanging on in the second set. I brought my energy up. I was really just hanging on and waiting and the patience was kind of good today,” Alexander Zverev said on court.

“He hit me off the court in the first set and I did not play well at all, but he was a big reason why. He gave me no rhythm and I am happy I turned it around in the tie-break and ran away in the third set.”

Alexander Zverev will be a big favourite to win Sunday’s championship match when he faces Tabilo’s countryman Jarry. 

Jarry is guaranteed to move up to a career-high number 17 in the world rankings after reaching his seventh ATP final.

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The 28-year-old is hunting his fourth tour title after coming through a more prosaic encounter with American Paul than Zverev had with Tabilo.

Carlos Alcaraz, who crashed out of the Madrid Open after suffering a shock defeat at the hands of Andrey Rublev, withdrew from next week’s ATP Italian Open due to a right forearm injury. The Spaniard announced this on Friday.

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“I felt some pain after playing in Madrid, some discomfort in my arm. Unfortunately, I will not be able to play in Rome. I need to rest so I can recover and play 100 percent pain free.” Carlos Alcaraz wrote on X. 

Alcaraz's hopes of a hat-trick of titles at the Madrid Open ended shockingly at the hands of Andrey Rublev on Wednesday. Rublev achieved the biggest victory of his career on clay, defeating Alcaraz 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 under the roof of the Manolo Santana Arena.

Carlos Alcaraz had previously expressed feeling some discomfort in his arm before the match. But on Friday, Alcaraz reversed course, saying that recent test results caused him to reevaluate.

Alcaraz had delayed start to his clay season after he withdrew from the Monte Carlo and Barcelona clay court tournaments due to a right arm injury at the start of April. He has high hopes of playing in Rome next week as he continues his preparations for the French Open. The French Open, the sole Grand Slam on clay, gets underway on May 26. He reached last year’s semifinals.

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On the other hand, world no. 2 Jannik Sinner also withdrew from his quarterfinal match due to a hip injury, which had plagued him for at least two prior matches at the tournament, and world No. 4 Daniil Medvedev, the defending champion in Rome, retired after losing the first set of his own quarterfinal match Thursday.