Another 17-year-old player has entered the TOP 500, matching Alcaraz!

At the start of the new year, tennis news has emerged again. The 17-year-old French prospect Quame has broken into the world top 500, instantly joining the ranks alongside legendary players. Here are those who made the TOP 500 before age 17 since the 21st century (personal best rankings are in parentheses).

Wang Yuzuo (highest 85)

This player once reached the top 100, but his later development was disappointing, and he eventually faded into obscurity.

Gasquet (7)

Nadal (1)

These two contemporaneous friends had a one-sided head-to-head record. French talent Gasquet never won a title above the 500-level, which is truly regrettable. The extraordinarily gifted Nadal needs no introduction; if he hadn’t emerged so brilliantly, Federer might have maintained his peak for longer.

Krolev (46)

Del Potro (3)

Tomic (17)

All of these were rare prodigies in their time, but their careers took very different paths. Del Potro won the US Open by defeating Federer and Nadal consecutively; although he only claimed this one Grand Slam, its value is immense. He is also the only male Grand Slam champion outside Europe in the past two decades.

Coric (12)

Rublev (5)

These two current mid-career players have both struggled recently. Since winning the Cincinnati Masters a few years ago, Coric’s performance has declined steadily, even requiring Challenger events to regain form.

Kozlov (103)

Lee Duck-hee (130)

Auger-Aliassime (5)

Zeng Junxin (83)

Among these four players, Auger-Aliassime has achieved the most, having won nine tour titles; the others’ highest rankings hover just around the top 100, showing little improvement from their early promise.

Draper (4)

Alcaraz (1)

These two players are undoubtedly rising stars. Draper was widely expected to become the third top player after Alcaraz and Sinner. He reached the US Open semifinals two years ago and last year defeated Alcaraz to win the Indian Wells Masters, enjoying a period of great prominence. However, injuries sidelined him in the latter half of last season, and he has been inactive since the US Open. Recent photos show Draper with a fresh haircut, seemingly preparing for the next season. We look forward to his comeback, as he once reached a career-high world ranking of fourth. As for the new Grand Slam champion Alcaraz, there is no need for introduction; how high his future achievements will reach remains to be seen.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Luo Cheng Qiye)