Ben Shelton hits new career-high ranking of No. 5, just third lefty to be ranked in ATP Top 5 this century

Two weeks ago, Madison Keys rose to No. 6, and with Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula at No. 3 and No. 5, it marked the first time there were three American women in the Top 6 since 2004.

Now, that same trio has one-upped themselves.

With Jasmine Paolini falling in the third round of her title defense in Dubai last week, she dips from No. 4 to No. 6 on the new WTA rankings, meaning Pegula shuffles up from No. 5 to No. 4 and Keys rises from No. 6 to No. 5—her career Top 5 debut.

With that, it’s the first time there are three U.S. women in the Top 5 since the week of November 3rd, 2003, when Serena Williams, Lindsay Davenport and Jennifer Capriati were No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5.

WTA TOP 10 THE WEEK OF NOVEMBER 3RD, 2003:

No. 1 Kim Clijsters (BEL)
No. 2 Justine Henin (BEL)
No. 3 Serena Williams (USA)
No. 4 Lindsay Davenport (USA)
No. 5 Jennifer Capriati (USA)
No. 6 Amelie Mauresmo (FRA)
No. 7 Venus Williams (USA)
No. 8 Anastasia Myskina (RUS)
No. 9 Elena Dementieva (RUS)
No. 10 Chanda Rubin (USA)

On November 10th, 2003, Mauresmo rose from No. 6 to No. 4 after her run to the final of the WTA Finals, bumping Davenport to No. 5 and Capriati to No. 6, and today is the first day since then that three Americans are in the WTA Top 5 at the same time.

The last time there were three American women ranked in the Top 5, Pegula was 9 years old, Keys was 8 years old, and Gauff wasn't even born yet.

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As for Keys specifically, she’s the 20th American woman to reach the Top 5 since official WTA rankings began in 1975.

AMERICAN WOMEN TO REACH WTA TOP 5 (20):

No. 1s (8): Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Tracy Austin, Monica Seles, Lindsay Davenport, Jennifer Capriati, Venus Williams, Serena Williams
No. 2s (3): Billie Jean King, Andrea Jaeger, Coco Gauff
No. 3s (3): Pam Shriver, Sloane Stephens, Jessica Pegula
No. 4s (3): Zina Garrison, Mary Joe Fernandez, Sofia Kenin
No. 5s (3): Rosie Casals, Kathy Jordan, Madison Keys

Meanwhile, a few spots down from Keys, Mirra Andreeva jumps from No. 14 to No. 9—her Top 10 debut—after capturing the biggest title of her young career at the WTA 1000 event in Dubai.

At just 17 years old, Andreeva achieved a lot in Dubai, including becoming the youngest woman to capture the title in the tournament’s history, which dates back to 2001.

And now, she’s the youngest woman—or tennis player, period, female or male—to break into the Top 10 since Nicole Vaidisova in 2006. Vaidisova was 17 years, 3 months and 15 days when she cracked the elite for the first time on August 7th, 2006, and Andreeva is currently 17 years, 9 months and 26 days.

Andreeva defeated Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina—the fifth and sixth Top 10 wins of her career—en route to capturing the title in Dubai.

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Meanwhile, the woman Andreeva defeated for the title in Dubai, Denmark’s Clara Tauson, soars from No. 38 to No. 23 today, surpassing her previous high of No. 33 for her Top 30 debut.

On the ATP rankings, the runners-up at last week's ATP 500 events both break new ground, with Doha finalist Jack Draper rising from No. 16 to No. 12, besting his previous high of No. 15, and Rio finalist Alexandre Muller soaring from No. 60 to No. 41, his Top 50 debut.

And 21-year-old Jaime Faria makes his Top 100 debut, rising from No. 107 to No. 87 after reaching his first ATP quarterfinal in Rio. He's the youngest Portuguese player to break into the ATP Top 100 since Nuno Marques cracked the elite as a 20-year-old in 1991.

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