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PIF ATP Rankings Update

Paul hits career milestone with Top 10 breakthrough

American is a four-time ATP Tour champion
January 27, 2025
Tommy Paul climbs to a career-high No. 9 in the PIF ATP Rankings.
ATP Tour
Tommy Paul climbs to a career-high No. 9 in the PIF ATP Rankings. By ATP Staff

Tommy Paul broke new ground Monday, when he cracked the Top 10 in the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time following his run to the quarter-finals at the Australian Open. The 27-year-old joined Taylor Fritz as American men inside the World’s Top 10.

Paul, a four-time ATP Tour champion, has been a staple inside the Top 20 since January 2023. But last year he enjoyed his most successful campaign on Tour and has now climbed to a career-high World No. 9.

The American attributed his surge in form to a shift in mindset within his team and himself. 

“There's a lot more structure in my life,” Paul said after his fourth-round win at the Australian Open. “I have such a good team around me. I would probably credit most of it to my team. Keeping my body healthy is huge throughout the whole year.

“Last year I had one setback with the rolled ankle and we were back on court in two weeks, playing a tournament three weeks later, which wouldn't be the case before. We're just much more on top of things. We're working hard in everything that we can.”

It All Adds Up

Paul added three tour-level titles to his resume in 2024, including trophies at indoor hard-court ATP 250 events in Dallas and Stockholm. He also secured a maiden ATP 500 crown on the grass at Queen’s Club, London. 

The 27-year-old had the opportunity to cement his status as a Top 10 player at the Adelaide International earlier this month, but fell just short when he lost to Felix Auger-Aliassime in the semi-finals. Yet Paul made amends and sealed his breakthrough with an impressive run in Melbourne, where he made at least the quarter-finals for the second time (2023 SF). 

It has been a journey of steady progress for Paul, who in 2015 made two Grand Slam boys' singles finals (Roland Garros and US Open) and became the No. 3 junior in the world.

It took until September 2019 for the American to crack the Top 100, a group he has not departed since. The following year, he began working with Brad Stine, the former coach of Jim Courier and Kevin Anderson among others.

Paul has shown steady progress since. He reached the Top 20 for the first time in January 2023 and has continued pushing forward. His peers, including Australian Open quarter-final opponent Alexander Zverev, have noticed the improvement.

"I think he grew a lot as a player, right?... He had some great results at Grand Slams, Masters events. He's a top player now," Zverev said before their quarter-final clash in Melbourne.

The German later added: " I think he is somebody that is quite a smart player. I think he is somebody that can change tactics quite a lot when he plays tennis. He can mix up his serves a lot. He can mix up his groundstrokes a lot. He can go high with the forehand, can go faster, use a lot of backhand slice. Just shorten the points, make them longer. He can do everything on a tennis court."

Paul is next scheduled to compete in a week at the Dallas Open, which is now an ATP 500 event.

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