2016 has been quite an eventful year in tennis with a number of significant moments in the history of the sport that include Novak Djokovic’s completion of a Career Grand Slam, Serena Williams equaling Steffi Graf’s record of 22 Grand Slam titles in the Open Era, Andy Murray becoming the first player, male or female to win two Olympic golds at the singles event before becoming the first ever British player to be World No.1, and Serena Williams breaking Steffi Graf’s record of 385 weeks for the longest period at the top of the rankings for any player. This year saw many players making remarkable comebacks and many going through a declination phase.One thing that was seen in 2016 even more than 2015 was the emergence of young talents. Many youngsters made their mark on the professional circuit with some even beating the big guns and some being touted as future champions. Let’s take a look at 10 youngsters who made a big mark in 2016 and have a chance of winning a Grand Slam in 2017.
#10. Taylor Fritz
The 19-year old American reached two junior Grand Slam finals last year at the French Open and the US Open, winning the latter tournament which helped him turn pro. Towards the end of 2015, Fritz swiftly rose into the Top 250 of the ATP rankings by winning three ITF Challenger titles.Fritz began 2016 by reaching the main draw of a Grand Slam Tournament for the first time at the Australian Open. In his opening match against 25th seed Jack Sock, Fritz gave his compatriot a tough fight before he went down 4-6, 6-3, 6-0, 3-6, 4-6. Following the Australian Open, Fritz received a wildcard at the Memphis Open and scripted a major upset by eliminating World No. 29 Steve Johnson in the second round. He went on to reach the final of the tournament where he lost to three-time defending champion Kei Nishikori in straight sets. By reaching the final, he became the youngest American to reach an ATP final since Michael Chang at the 1988 SAP Open and by doing so in only his third ATP tournament, Fritz became the 2nd fastest American to reach an ATP final.He burst into the Top 100 by reaching the quarter-finals of the Mexican Open which was also his first ATP 500 tournament. One of Fritz’s most notable matches of the year was his Mercedes Cup encounter against Roger Federer where he gave the 17-time Grand Slam champion a run for his money before going down in three close sets. After losing in the first round of Wimbledon to Stan Wawrinka in four sets, Fritz reached his third ATP quarter-final of the year at the Atlanta Tennis Championships and as a result, he rose to a career-high ranking of 53.At the US Open, Fritz faced Jack Sock for the second time in a Grand Slam this year and once again, Sock wasn’t given an easy entry into the second round as he had to go through five grueling sets to win the match. Fritz ended the year as World No. 76 and was the youngest player in the Top 100 of the ATP rankings. At the ATP awards, he was adjudged “Newcomer of the Year”.The 19-year old Taylor Fritz has shown a few sparks of promise this year and provided he works on his game and fitness, he could well be someone to watch out for next year.
#9. Kyle Edmund
2016 was a breakthrough year for the 21-year old Briton who has produced quite a few promising performances this year. Edmund began the year by reaching the quarter-finals of the Qatar Open which was his maiden ATP quarter-final appearance.
At the Australian Open, Edmund suffered cramps during his opening round match against Bosnian Damir Dzumhur and eventually lost in five sets. He ended his hard-court with a second-round exit at the Miami Masters at the hands of Novak Djokovic after beating Czech Jiri Vesely in the first round.He did not have a very good clay-court season and exited the French Open in the second round. Edmund began his grass-court by defeating World No.18 Gilles Simon in the first round of the Queen’s Club Championships.
Fritz went on to reach the quarter-finals of the competition before being ousted by eventual winner Andy Murray in three sets. He ended his grass-court season by exiting the Wimbledon in the first round.Edmund produced one of the upsets of the US Open by defeating three-time Grand Slam semi-finalist Richard Gasquet in the first round in straight sets. He later upset former quarter-finalist John Isner in the third round before falling to Novak Djokovic in the fourth round which is his best Grand Slam performance till date.Following the US Open, Edmund reached his third ATP quarter-final of the year at the China Open after qualifying for the competition. He entered the Top 50 of the ATP rankings by reaching the second round of the Shanghai Masters which was followed by his first ATP semi-final at the European Open where he defeated former Grand Slam finalist David Ferrer. Despite exiting the Vienna Open in the first round, Edmund reached a career-high ranking of 40.He has so far been an exciting young prospect and provided he improves his game, this young prodigy could well be the second British player to be World No.1.
#8. Jack Sock
Last year, aged 22, Sock became the youngest American to reach the fourth round of the French Open since Pete Sampras in 1993. He ended the year in the Top 25 of the ATP rankings. This year, Sock began his season by reaching the final of the Auckland Open where he upset David Ferrer in the semi-finals. After a disappointing outings at the Australian Open and the Rio Open, Sock ended the hard-court season with third round exits at Indian Wells and Miami.Sock began his clay-court season by reaching the final of the US Men’s Clay Court Championships where he was shockingly defeated by 148th ranked Juan Monaco.
This was followed by third and second round exits at Madrid and Rome respectively. Sock ended his clay-court season with a third round exit at the French Open which was followed by another third round exit at Wimbledon.Sock began his US Open Series by reaching the quarter-finals of the Citi Open which was followed by a third round exit at the Rogers Cup. At the US Open, Sock reached the fourth round of a Grand Slam for a second time after defeating 2014 champion Marin Cilic in the third round in straight sets. However, he lost in the fourth round to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.At the Shanghai Masters, Sock stunned Wimbledon runner-up Milos Raonic to reach his first Masters 1000 quarter-final where he was beaten by Gilles Simon.
This was followed by his fourth ATP final at the Stockholm Open where he was beaten by a resurgent Juan Martin Del Potro. He ended his Tour by reaching a second Masters 1000 quarter-final at Paris. He ended the year ranked 23rd, his best year-end ranking.The 6ft 3in tall American has put in some really promising performances this year which just keep on strengthening the belief that he will be tomorrow’s Grand Slam winner and provided he works on his fitness, he could well win one.
#7. Elina Svitolina
The 22-year old Ukrainian had her breakthrough year in 2014 where she reached the quarter-finals of the Cincinnati Masters before reaching the semi-finals of the Wuhan Open. Last year, she made her first Grand Slam quarter-final at the French Open and reached the Top 20 of the WTA rankings for the first time in her career.Svitolina had a good start to her year, reaching the final of the Hopman Cup along with Alexander Dolgopolov where they were beaten by the Australian pair of Nick Kyrgios and Jarmila Wolfe. However, this was followed by a first round exit at the Sydney International and a shocking second round defeat to qualifier Naomi Osaka at the Australian Open. Following the Australian Open, Svitolina dropped out of the Top 20.She rebounded well by reaching the semi-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships. After a disappointing first round exit at the Qatar Open, Svitolina won her 4th WTA title at the Malaysian Open which lifted her to a career-high ranking of 14. She ended her hard-court season with third and fourth round exits at Indian Wells and Miami.Svitolina was having a miserable clay-court season where she exited the Madrid and Rome Masters in the second and first rounds respectively. However, she ended her clay-court season on a decent note by reaching the fourth round of the French Open where she was beaten by eventual runner-up Serena Williams.A poor grass-court season followed the French Open as Svitolina was ousted in the opening round of the Aegon Classic before being knocked out of the Wimbledon in the second round. Svitolina came into the Rio Olympics at the back of a third round exit at the Rogers Cup. At Rio, she scripted a major upset by defeating defending champion and top seed Serena Williams in the third round to reach the quarter-finals where she was trounced by eventual bronze medalist Petra Kvitova.After a disappointing second round defeat to qualifier Daria Gavrilova at the Cincinnati Masters, Svitolina bounced back at the Connecticut Open by reaching the final where she lost to Aga Radwanska. At the US Open, Svitolina reached the third round where she was beaten by Petra Kvitova. Svitolina had a successful Asian swing where she reached the semi-finals of both the Pan Pacific Open and the China Open. This brought her back to the Top 15 and assured her place in the WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai for the second year running
. After reaching the quarter-finals of the Kremlin Cup, Svitolina came to the WTA Elite Trophy in good form. She bettered her semi-final performance of last year by reaching the final this year where she was up against Kvitova. Like the Rio Olympics and US Open, Svitolina lost in straight sets yet again. However, she ended the season ranked 14th which will be her highest year-end ranking.The Ukrainian had a good run of form towards the end of the year and provided she maintains her consistency, she could be a serious contender to win a Grand Slam and with age on her side as well, she could well be tomorrow’s World No.1.
#6. Naomi Osaka
The young Japanese professional has been one of the most exciting young prospects in this year’s World Tour 2016 and has shown a lot of promise this year. After failing to qualify for the Brisbane International, Osaka was successfully able to qualify for the Hobart International where she reached the round of 16. Following this, she reached the main draw of a Grand Slam for the first time at the Australian Open.She won her first Grand Slam match by beating Donna Vekic in straight sets. This was followed by a shock victory over 18th seeded Elina Svitolina in the second round before falling to two-time champion Victoria Azarenka in the third round.She then reached the quarter-finals of the Mexican Open before losing to eventual champion Sloane Stephens. After failing to qualify for the Indian Wells Masters, Osaka ended her hard-court season by reaching the third round of the Miami Masters.She began her clay-court season by qualifying for the Charleston Open.
Despite being knocked out in the opening round, Osaka reached the Top 100 of the WTA rankings for the first time in her career. After successive failed qualifications for the Stuttgart Open and Madrid Masters, Osaka reached the third round of the French Open but not before giving 6th seeded Simona Halep a tough fight.Injuries hampered her grass-court season and as a result, she was forced to miss Wimbledon. After a series of failed qualifications in the US Open series, she had what was perhaps her best Grand Slam of the year at the US Open.
She stunned 28th seeded Coco Vandeweghe in the first round before defeating Chinese qualifier Ying-Ying Duan in the second round to setup a match with 8th seed Madison Keys in the third round. Keys won the first set 7-5 before Osaka came back from 3-4 behind to take the second set 6-4. In the third set, Osaka was just a few inches short of a place in the fourth round at 5-1 and at 5-2, saw herself serving for the match. However, Keys staged a remarkable comeback to win the match which left the teenager in tears.Following the US Open, Osaka reached the final of the Pan Pacific Open, beating the likes of Dominika Cibulkova and Elina Svitolina on the way. She lost to a resurgent Caroline Wozniacki in the final but this result rose her into the Top 50 of the WTA rankings. She ended her season by reaching the quarter-finals of the Tianjin Open where she lost to two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova in three sets.Having begun 2016 ranked 127th and ending the year ranked 40th, Osaka was named the WTA Newcomer of the Year. This young talent from Japan has shown a lot of promise this year and provided she matures on her form and game, she could well be a player to watch out for.
#5. Ana Konjuh
The two-time junior Grand Slam champion made her debut on the ATP World Tour in 2014. She reached the third round of the Wimbledon Championships that year and ended the year ranked 90. Last year, she won the Aegon Open in Nottingham, thus becoming the youngest player to win a WTA title since Tamira Paszek in 2006.This year, Konjuh began her Tour by winning her first ever match at the Australian Open before being eliminated in the second round. After a series of failed qualifications throughout the remainder of the hard-court and for most of the clay-court season, Konjuh reached the second round of the French Open where she went down to Dominika Cibulkova in three sets.She began her grass-court season with a first round exit at the Mallorca Open which was followed by a successful qualification to the Eastbourne International. She reached the second round of the main draw before retiring against Monica Puig.
At Wimbledon, Konjuh beat Italian Karin Knapp in the first round to setup a match with 2012 runner-up Aga Radwanska. Radwanska took the first set but Konjuh came back to win the second set. During the exciting third set, Konjuh injured her ankle and Radwanska eventually took the set 9-7 to win the match.After exiting the Rio Olympics in the second round and failing to qualify for the Cincinnati Masters, Konjuh came into the US Open ranked 92 in the world. In the first round, she upset Roland Garros semi-finalist Kiki Bertens. She then beat higher ranked players like Kurumi Nara and Varvara Lepchenko to face Radwanska in what would be a rematch of their Wimbledon meeting.
This time, Konjuh beat the Pole in straight sets to reach her first ever Grand Slam quarter-final, thus becoming the youngest Grand Slam quarter-finalist in a decade and the first female Croat to do so since Karolina Sprem at the 2004 Wimbledon Championships. In the last eight, she was beaten by eventual runner-up Karolina Pliskova in straight sets. She rose 40 places up to 52nd following the tournament.The US Open was followed by another quarter-final appearance at the Guangzhou Open. After failed attempts to qualify for the Wuhan and China Opens, Konjuh ended her Tour by reaching the quarter-finals of the Kremlin Cup where she was beaten by Elina Svitolina. She will end the year ranked 48th in the world.The Croat has produced quite a few promising performances and provided she maintains her form, Iva Majoli may not remain the only female Grand Slam Singles champion from Croatia.
#4. Lucas Pouille
The 22-year old Frenchman has had his most successful season this year and a lot will be expected from him next year. Pouille began 2016 by reaching the quarter-finals of the Brisbane International where he lost to eventual winner Milos Raonic. Raonic would go on to beat him in the first round of the Australian Open. The Australian Open was followed by a string of poor performances that ended at the Miami Masters where he beat three higher ranked opponents including World No.8 David Ferrer en route to the fourth round where he lost to Gilles Simon.He began his clay-court season by beating another Top 10 player, this time Richard Gasquet in the second round of the Monte-Carlo Masters before being defeated by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the next round. Pouille then reached his first ATP final at the Bucharest Open where he lost to Fernando Verdasco. After exiting the Madrid Masters in the second round, Pouille reached the semi-finals of the Rome Masters where he was solidly beaten by eventual champion Andy Murray. He ended his clay-court season with a second round exit at the French Open.After back-to-back first round exits at the Stuttgart Open and the Gerry Weber Open, Pouille reached his first Grand Slam quarter-final at the Wimbledon where he lost to Tomas Berdych in straight sets. After disappointing outings at the Rogers Cup and the Cincinnati Masters, Pouille reached his second Grand Slam final at the US Open where he defeated Roberto Bautista Agut in the third round before stunning Rafael Nadal in the fourth round.Following the US Open, Pouille entered the Top 20 of the ATP rankings and soon after, won his first ATP title at the Moselle Open. At the Asian swing, Pouille had second and third round exits at the China Open and Shanghai Masters respectively. After a shocking first round defeat to Feliciano Lopez at the Vienna Open, Pouille ended his Tour with a third round exit at the Paris Masters. At the end of the World Tour, Pouille received the “Most Improved Player of the Year” award at the ATP awards and will end the year ranked 15th.Lucas Pouille had a very fruitful World Tour this year and provided he maintains his good form, he could produce even bigger upsets next year.
#3. Nick Kyrgios
This young Australian hothead burst into the headlines after stunning Rafael Nadal in the fourth round of the 2014 Wimbledon Championships to reach the quarter-finals on his Wimbledon debut. About six months later, Kyrgios reached his second Grand Slam quarter-final at the Australian Open which helped him reach the Top 30 of the ATP rankings. After failing to defend his quarter-final points from last year at the Wimbledon, Kyrgios’ ranking dropped below 40.Kyrgios began 2016 with a third round exit at the Australian Open following which, he won his first ATP title at the Open 13, beating two Top 10 players en route. Kyrgios then reached the semi-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships where he was beaten by eventual winner Stan Wawrinka. After a second round exit at the Indian Wells Masters, Kyrgios ended his hard-court season by reaching the semi-finals of the Miami Masters.The 21-year old began his clay-court season by reaching the semi-finals of the Estoril Open which was followed by a quarter-final appearance at the Mutua Madrid Open. He ended his clay-court season with back-to-back third round exits at the Rome Masters and the French Open.A first round exit at the Queen’s Club Championships was followed by reaching the fourth round of Wimbledon where he was beaten by eventual champion Andy Murray. After a shocking first round exit at the Rogers Cup, Kyrgios won his second ATP title at the Atlanta Open by beating defending champion John Isner in the final.
A second round exit at the Cincinnati Masters was followed by a third round exit at the US Open where he was beaten by 71st ranked Ukrainian Illya Marchenko. Following the tournament, Kyrgios reached a career-high ranking of 15th.Kyrgios won his maiden ATP 500 title at the Japan Open by coming back from a set down to beat David Goffin. He ended the year with a third round exit at the Shanghai Masters and will end the year ranked 13th in the world, his best year-end ranking.Touted by many to be a future Grand Slam champion and a future World No.1, Kyrgios is yet to live up to expectations but he produced a few scintillating performances this year and given he maintains consistency and lowers his temper, he could well be a threat to the likes of Murray and Djokovic.
#2. Dominic Thiem
The 23-year old Austrian produced a couple of exciting performances in 2014 and 2015, ending 2015 in the Top 20 of the ATP rankings. This year, Thiem began by reaching the semi-finals of the Brisbane International which was followed by a disastrous second round exit at the Sydney International. At the Australian Open, Thiem was knocked out in the third round by David Goffin.Following the Australian Open, Thiem won his fourth ATP title at the Argentina Open where he upset Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals before defeating Nicolas Almagro in the final. His good form persisted as he reached the semi-finals of the Rio Open, upsetting David Ferrer en route which was followed by his second ATP title at the Mexican Open. He ended his hard-court season with round-of-16 finishes at the Indian Wells and Miami Masters.He began his clay-court season with a third round finish at the Monte-Carlo Masters which was followed by a runner-up performance at the BMW Open. After losing to a resurgent Juan Martin Del Potro at the Madrid Masters, Thiem reached the quarter-finals of the Rome Masters.
Thiem won his third ATP title of the year by successfully defending his title at the Open de Nice, and ended his clay-court season on a brilliant note by reaching his first Grand Slam semi-final at Roland Garros where he beat David Goffin in the quarter-finals, thus avenging his Australian Open defeat to the Belgian. He lost to eventual champion Novak Djokovic in the semis in straight sets. Following the tournament, Thiem reached a career-high ranking of World No.7.Thiem began his grass-court season on a winning note by winning his fourth ATP title of the year at the Mercedes Cup where he beat Roger Federer in the semis before defeating Philipp Kohlschreiber in the final. It was also the first grass-court tournament win of his career. After exiting the Gerry Weber Open in the semi-finals, Thiem was stunned in the second round of Wimbledon by Czech Jiri Vesely.The Wimbledon was followed by disappointing performances at the Austrian Open and the Rogers Cup. Thiem bounced back by reaching the quarter-finals of the Cincinnati Masters. At the US Open, Thiem reached the fourth round where he had to retire against Juan Martin Del Potro due to a knee injury.Following the US Open, Thiem reached the final of the Moselle Open where he lost to an in-form Lucas Pouille in straight sets. Thiem had a patchy Asian swing with quarter-final and first round exits at the Chengdu Open and China Open respectively. This was followed by second round exits at the Vienna Open and the Paris Masters. The withdrawal of Rafael Nadal from the remainder of the ATP World Tour meant that Thiem would qualify for the World Tour Finals for the first time in his career.At the World Tour Finals, Thiem lost his opening round robin match to Djokovic in three sets but won his second match against Gael Monfils to keep his semi-final hopes alive. In his final round robin match, he was beaten by Milos Raonic and was eliminated from the tournament.The year-end World No.8 did not have the best of endings to the year but he has produced quite a number of good performances this year and provided he is consistent, he could be a top contender for a Grand Slam next year around.
#1. Alexander Zverev
This young prodigy from Germany has been one of the rising stars in tennis this year by scripting a few major upsets which made him the youngest player to enter the Top 20 of the ATP rankings since Novak Djokovic ten years back.Zverev began his year with a first round exit at the Australian Open at the hands of eventual runner-up Andy Murray which was followed by his first ATP semi-final at the Open Sud de France where he beat 2014 US Open champion Marin Cilic on the way.
A quarter-final finish at the Rotterdam Open was followed by a second round exit at the Open 13. The German went on to reach the fourth round of the Indian Wells Masters, beating two Top 30 players en route. Zverev ended his hard-court season with a second round exit at the Miami Masters.Zverev began his clay-court season with a second round exit at the Monte-Carlo Masters which was followed by a third round exit at the Barcelona Open. He then reached his second ATP semi-final of the year at the BMW Open where he lost to eventual winner Dominic Thiem. After a second round exit at the Italian Open, he reached his first ever ATP final at the Open de Nice where he was beaten by Dominic Thiem for the second time in three tournaments. His clay-court season also ended with a loss to Thiem at the third round of the French Open.The young german star began his grass-court season by reaching the final of the Gerry Weber Open where he recorded perhaps the biggest win of his career so far against Roger Federer at the semi-finals. He ended his grass-court season with a third round exit at Wimbledon.After a shocking first round exit at the German Open, Zverev reached the semi-finals of the Citi Open which was followed by consecutive first round defeats at the Rogers Cup and the Cincinnati Masters. He exited the US Open in the round after a surprise defeat to 64th ranked Brit Daniel Evans in four sets. Following the US Open, Zverev won his first ATP title at the St. Petersburg Open where he beat Tomas Berdych in the semi-finals before humbling newly-crowned US Open champion Stan Wawrinka in the final.Zverev finally achieved his first win over Dominic Thiem in four meetings this year at the first round of the China Open. He eventually reached the quarter-finals where he was defeated by David Ferrer. A third round exit at the Shanghai Masters was followed by a semi-final performance at the Stockholm Open which helped him enter the Top 20 of the ATP rankings.The 19-year old Zverev showed the world a glimpse of his talent this year and if he can improve his game, he could well be an overwhelming favorite to win a Grand Slam in 2017 and definitely a big star in the forthcoming years.
