Generational Rivalry: Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz head into 2026 after playing for four of five biggest titles

So far this week we’ve covered this year’s title leaders and win leaders, and today we bring you the biggest ranking jumps from the 2022 to 2023 year-end ATP and WTA Top 100s.

First off, the biggest ranking jump among the ATP’s year-end Top 100 this year goes to 19-year-old American Alex Michelsen, who soared 504 spots between 2022 (No. 601) and 2023 (No. 97).

Michelsen’s breakthrough year was highlighted by reaching his first ATP final at the grass-court event in Newport in just his second ATP main draw played, as well as picking up his first two Challenger titles in Chicago in July and in Knoxville, Tennessee in November.

He’s currently the youngest player in the ATP Top 100.

The list also includes Thiago Seyboth Wild, perhaps best known for taking out Daniil Medvedev in the first round of Roland Garros, and the second-youngest player in the ATP’s year-end Top 100, Arthur Fils, who won the first ATP title of his career in Lyon in May.

BIGGEST RANKING MOVERS AMONG ATP YEAR-END TOP 100 (from Dec. 5, 2022 year-end rankings to Dec. 4, 2023 year-end rankings):
+504: Alex Michelsen, USA [No. 601 to No. 97]
+313: Thiago Seyboth Wild, BRA [No. 392 to No. 79]
+213: Arthur Fils, FRA [No. 249 to No. 36]
+178: Max Purcell, AUS [No. 223 to No. 45]
+152: Sebastian Ofner, AUT [No. 195 to No. 43]
+134: Nicolas Jarry, CHI [No. 153 to No. 19]
+126: Jan-Lennard Struff, GER [No. 151 to No. 25]
+124: Dominik Koepfer, GER [No. 201 to No. 77]
+108: Fabian Marozsan, HUN [No. 172 to No. 64]
+107: Alexander Shevchenko, RUS [No. 155 to No. 48]

There was one other man who made a triple-digit jump into the Top 100 over the last year, and it’s a very familiar name—former world No. 3 Stan Wawrinka, grinding his way back up the rankings after undergoing a pair of foot surgeries in 2021, jumped exactly 100 spots from No. 149 to No. 49 over the last 12 months.

Andreeva very nearly reached her first Grand Slam quarterfinal at Wimbledon, leading Keys in the fourth round, 6-3, 4-1, but ultimately falling in three sets.

Advertising

The biggest ranking jump among the WTA’s year-end Top 100 this year goes to 16-year-old rising star Mirra Andreeva, who rose 359 spots between 2022 (No. 405) and 2023 (No. 46).

Andreeva, who was still playing in the juniors at the start of 2023, made a splash at the WTA 1000 in Madrid, going all the way to the fourth round—she followed that up with breakthrough Grand Slam runs at Roland Garros (third round) and Wimbledon (fourth round)

She’s by far the youngest player in the WTA’s year-end Top 100—everyone else in the elite is either 18 years old or older.

Also among the biggest women’s movers is Karolina Muchova, who went from No. 149 all the way into the Top 10 at No. 8, and a pair of former Top 10 players in Elina Svitolina and Sofia Kenin.

BIGGEST RANKING MOVERS AMONG WTA YEAR-END TOP 100 (from Nov. 7, 2022 year-end rankings to Nov. 6, 2023 year-end rankings):
+359: MIrra Andreeva, RUS [No. 405 to No. 46]
+321: Wang Yafan, CHN [No. 418 to No. 97]
+308: Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, RUS [No. 367 to No. 59]
+278: Emina Bektas, USA [No. 360 to No. 82]
+254: Yanina Wickmayer, BEL [No. 328 to No. 74]
+211: Elina Svitolina, UKR [No. 236 to No. 25]
+202: Sofia Kenin, USA [No. 235 to No. 33]
+156: Peyton Stearns, USA [No. 209 to No. 53]
+141: Karolina Muchova, CZE [No. 149 to No. 8]
+140: Greet Minnen, BEL [No. 202 to No. 62]

There were five other women who made triple-digit jumps into the year-end Top 100 this year: Guadalajara finalist Caroline Dolehide (130 spots from No. 172 to No. 42); former Roland Garros semifinalist Nadia Podoroska (126 spots from No. 204 to No. 78); college tennis star Diana Shnaider (122 spots from No. 182 to No. 60); and last but not least two more Americans, Kayla Day (108 spots from No. 195 to No. 87) and Emma Navarro (105 spots from No. 143 to No. 38).

Advertising