Ex-Wimbledon finalist to rise 405 ATP places and close to first title in three years
A former World No. 3 is battling his way back up the ATP rankings.
Marin Cilic could be set to climb a staggering 405 places in the ATP rankings after excelling in his comeback tournament. The former Wimbledon finalist was previously ranked world No. 3 but knee injuries saw him tumble down the rankings.
Cilic had not played an ATP-level event since February and slipped out of the top 1000 at the beginning of the year. The Croatian has made the most of a wildcard, though, and has performed excellently at the Hangzhou Open.
Having reached the final at the tournament, which he will contest tomorrow (Tuesday), the 35-year-old is set for a huge jump up the rankings. He is currently ranked No. 777 in the world, but could climb a remarkable 405 places thanks to the points won in China.
Cilic defeated Zachary Svajda and Yoshihito Nishioka to reach the quarter-final. In the last eight, he heroically saved two match points to overcome Yasutaka Uchiyama, who had stunned Holger Rune in his previous match.
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“I think today’s match was a really great level from both of us,” Cilic said after his quarter-final.
“In the second set, he played really great, was serving great under pressure and served great until the end of the match. For me, it was an amazing comeback, great to win that game at 5-3 when he was serving for the match and definitely thrilled with the win.”
Cilic went on to beat world No. 39 Brandon Nakashima in the semi-final and will now contest the tournament’s showdown. He is due to face home favourite Zhang Zhizhen, who is the top-ranked Chinese player in the ATP leaderboard.
Having played in just two tournaments in 2023, Cilic finished last season ranked 676th in the world and continued to drop down the rankings. His most recent ATP-level event was in Buenos Aires.
Cilic underwent knee surgery in early 2023 in an attempt to put an end to an ongoing fitness issue. He had a similar procedure earlier this year and is now battling back up the rankings.
The 2014 US Open champion will be hoping to return to his best form. That title remains his only Grand Slam triumph, although he has reached the finals of both Wimbledon and the Australian Open. He has 20 career titles to his name.
