Draper And Mpetshi Perricard Lead Nominees For ATP Most Improved Player Of Year

Jack Draper and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard are two candidates for the ATP Most Improved Player of the Year. There are four nominees for the honor in total.

22-year-old Draper's talent has been well-known for some time, and the British star began with purpose by reaching the final of the Adelaide International in his first tournament of 2024, finishing as the runner-up to Jiri Lehecka.

Draper's level dropped somewhat for the next few months, especially during the clay court swing. However, he had a stunning second half of the season, beginning during the grass court season in June.

The Briton secured a maiden ATP title at the Stuttgart Open. Draper defeated this year's US Open semifinalist Frances Tiafoe in the quarterfinal during that tournament before overcoming the 2021 Wimbledon runner-up Matteo Berrettini in the final.

He carried that form into the North American hardcourt swing. After progressing to the quarterfinal of the Cincinnati Open, Draper had his best Grand Slam run at the US Open, reaching the semifinal.

Draper defeated players like Botic van de Zandschulp, who defeated Rafael Nadal in his final singles match at the Davis Cup Finals, and Alex de Minaur. World No. 1 and eventual US Open champion Jannik Sinner proved too strong in the final.

However, the 22-year-old was not done there. He won a maiden ATP 500 title at the Vienna Open, beating Karen Khachanov in the final. That took him to a career-high ranking of No. 15.

Draper's 2024 season was highly successful, but he is not content with those achievements. That is why the US Open semifinalist will train with Carlos Alcaraz for a week during the off-season.

21-year-old Mpetshi Perricard's rise was more unexpected than Draper's. The huge-serving Frenchman ended 2023 ranked No. 205 in the world, and few outside die-hard ATP Challenger Tour fans knew about him.

He quickly changed that, though. Mpetshi Perricard's run to the title on clay at the Lyon Open was among the most unexpected moments of 2024. Achieving that on home soil made the moment even more memorable for him.

Read also

Nadal Shines In Golf Tournament Just Days After Retiring From Professional Tennis

His massive serve also did significant damage at Wimbledon. Victories against Sebastian Korda, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Emil Ruusuvuori saw him progress to the fourth round, where Lorenzo Musetti beat him.

Mpetshi Perricard won a maiden ATP 500 title at the Swiss Indoors before 2024 ended. In the final, he overcame Ben Shelton, who joked that he felt like killing himself throughout the match because of his opponent's serve.

Tomas Machac is the third player shortlisted for the award. He reached the final of the Geneva Open in May, beating Novak Djokovic in the semifinal. Two-time French Open runner-up Casper Ruud bested him in the final.

The Czech also produced an incredible performance in the Shanghai Masters quarterfinal, beating Carlos Alcaraz to reach his maiden Masters 1000 semifinal, where he lost to world No. 1 Jannik Sinner.

Alejandro Tabilo completes the shortlist. The Chilean won the ASB Classic and the Mallorca Championships this season and was a semifinalist at the Italian Open.

Read also

Alcaraz Announces His First Grass Tournament For 2025 Season