The 9 youngest men in the top 100 of the ATP Rankings: Jakub Mensik at No 1, Carlos Alcaraz and Ben Shelton feature
Two teenagers feature in the list of youngest players in the top 100 of the ATP Rankings while former world No 1 Carlos Alcaraz also features.
Jakub Mensik and Juncheng Shang are the youngest players while 21-year-old Alcaraz is the most successful on the list (so far anyway).
The 9 youngest men in the top 100 of the ATP Rankings:
9. Ben Shelton – 22 (Date of Birth: October 9, 2002)
Ben Shelton is one of seven 22-year-olds in the top 100, but his birthday is last so he makes the cut.
The American failed to replicate his 2023 success this campaign as he started the year at No 17 and finished at No 21.
After reaching the semi-final of the US Open last year, his best run at the majors this year came at Wimbledon when he reached the fourth round.
He did win one title in 2024, the US Men’s Clay Court Championships, while he also finished runner-up at the Swiss Indoors.
8. Holger Rune – 21 (DOB: April 29, 2003)
Many believe Holger Rune could challenge the likes of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz and he has shown that he has the potential.
The Dane has reached three Grand Slam quarter-finals, won the 2022 Paris Masters by beating defending champion Novak Djokovic in the final, while he also has two Masters 1000 runners-up trophies.
Rune has five titles to his name, although he didn’t add to that tally in 2024 in what was a poor season by his standards as he finished the year at No 13.
7. Carlos Alcaraz – 21 (DOB: May 5, 2003)
Carlos Alcaraz won the 2022 US Open before he turned 19 and he has since added two Wimbledon titles and a French Open trophy to his name.
He remains the youngest year-end No 1 as he achieved that feat after his US Open success and currently sits on 16 ATP Tour singles titles.
Not bad for a 21-year-old.
6. Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard – 21 (DOB: July 8, 2003)
The man with the big serve, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, was one of the biggest risers in the ATP Rankings this year as he surged from No 205 to No 31.
The Frenchman, who hit a 235 km/h (146.0 mph) second serve in Stuttgart this year, reached two finals and won both tournaments as he lifted trophies at the Lyon Open and Swiss Indoors.
5. Luca Nardi – 21 (DOB: August 6, 2003)
Luca Nardi sits just inside the top 100 at No 92, although he has been as high as No 70.
The Italian made his ATP main draw debut in 2020 and he is yet to win a Grand Slam match or pick up a title, but he has reached the fourth round of an ATP Masters 1000 event.
That Masters run came at the 2024 Indian Wells Open when he famously beat then world No 1 Novak Djokovic in three sets in the third round.
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4. Arthur Fils – 20 (DOB: June 12, 2004)
Frenchman Arthur Fils won his maiden title in 2023 and followed it up with two more ATP singles trophies in 2024, both of them at ATP 500 events as he defeated Alexander Zverev in Hamburg and Ugo Humbert in Japan.
He also beat the likes Taylor Fritz, Holger Rune and Ben Shelton this season.
The 20-year-old also reached the fourth round at Wimbledon and made his top 20 debut, finishing the year at No 20.
3. Alex Michelsen – 20 (DOB: August 25, 2004)
Alex Michelsen currently sits at a career-high No 41 after finishing runner-up at the Hall of Fame Open and Winston-Salem Open in 2024.
The American’s best Grand Slam run came at the Australian Open where he reached the third round while he also secured his first ATP Masters 1000 win.
2. Juncheng Shang – 19 (DOB: February 02, 2005)
Juncheng made his professional debut shortly after his 17th birthday in 2022, but had to wait until the following year to claim his first win.
But the 2024 season was the one where he started his rise as he surged from No 183 to No 50 in the ATP Rankings.
He became the second Chinese man to win an ATP Tour title in September when he won the Chengdu Open, beating Lorenzo Musetti in the final, while he also reached the third round of the Australian Open and US Open.
1. Jakub Mensik – 19 (DOB: September 1, 2005)
Teenager Jakub Mensik made his Grand Slam debut in 2023 when he reached the third round of the US Open and he repeated that success at this year’s tournament.
The Czech has one ATP Tour singles runners-up trophy to his name as he lost the 2024 Qatar Open final against Karen Khachanov. He defeated the likes of Andy Murray, Andrey Rublev and Grigor Dimitrov this campaign and famously took a set off Novak Djokovic at the Shanghai Masters before losing in three sets.
Mensik kicked off the year at No 167, but finished at No 48.
