The young stars of the ATP Tour have impressed throughout 2025, picking up titles and rising up the rankings.
All four ATP Tour players who have won ‘big’ titles in 2025 (Grand Slams and Masters 1000s) are under the age of 24.
23-year-old Jannik Sinner won the Australian Open in January, picking up his third Major title, with a straight sets win over Alexander Zverev.
Shortly after, Jack Draper beat Holger Rune, 6-2, 6-2, to clinch his maiden Masters 1000 title at Indian Wells.
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Transitioning onto clay courts, Carlos Alcaraz won the Monte-Carlo Masters, as the Spaniard picked up his 18th tour-level title before his 22nd birthday.
However, it was a player younger than all three who won at the Miami Open earlier this year, as one top coach now claims he is competing at a level much higher than his ranking would suggest.
Patrick Mouratoglou says Jakub Mensik’s ‘level is much higher than his ranking’
Speaking on Instagram, Naomi Osaka’s coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, shared his thoughts on the Czech teenager.
“[Jakub] Mensik is not top ten yet because he’s coming from far, and he’s rising fast in the rankings, and it takes time to reach the top ten,” said Mouratoglou.
“Don’t forget that he won a Masters 1000 in Miami just a few weeks ago, beating Novak [Djokovic] in the final, so his level is much higher than his ranking.”
Mouratoglou’s thoughts came as part of a wider discussion, reacting to Alexander Bublik’s comments about the state of men’s tennis during his defeat to Mensik in Madrid.
“Remember when tennis was easy, like five years ago, it was so easy to play tennis,” said Bublik to umpire Mohamed Lahyani.
“You had a bunch of random people in the top 50, barely moving.
“Now this guy [Mensik] is not even top five, not even top ten. The f— is that?”
Mouratoglou disagreed with Bublik’s comments, suggesting that using Mensik as an example of tennis becoming stronger was unfair.
“As much as I love [Alexander] Bublik, I cannot agree with him,” he said.
“For me, it’s more that he was losing; he was emotional in his own way, which is to be funny and say crazy things.
“He says the top 50 is so much stronger now than five years ago. I don’t think so. He cannot take Mensik as an example.
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“He feels ‘Oh, this guy is ranked that level, but he plays top ten’. Which is probably true. On hard court for sure, and if not on clay yet, probably soon.
“So he’s playing a guy whose ranking is lower than his real level. So that’s why he has that feeling, but I don’t feel like that feeling is true in general in the top 50.
“I feel like the level is extremely high. Every player is in danger in any round, but I think it was the case already five years ago.”
Mensik beat Bublik, 6-3, 6-2, to advance to the Madrid Open quarterfinals, where he fell to defeat against Francisco Cerundolo.
Is Jakub Mensik on track to break into the top ten in 2025?
The 19-year-old has enjoyed a fantastic start to his season, shocking the world in March when Mensik beat Djokovic to claim the title in Miami.
Mensik then backed that performance up with a strong run to the last eight in Madrid, where Cerundolo put an end to his nine-match Masters 1000 winning streak.
- 1. 2025 Miami Open 1R – Jakub Mensik beat Roberto Bautista Agut, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1
- 2. 2025 Miami Open 2R – Jakub Mensik beat Jack Draper, 7-6, 7-6
- 3. 2025 Miami Open 3R – Jakub Mensik beat Roman Safiullin, 6-4, 6-4
- – 2025 Miami Open 4R – Jakub Mensik advanced via walkover
- 4. 2025 Miami Open QF – Jakub Mensik beat Arthur Fils, 7-6, 6-1
- 5. 2025 Miami Open SF – Jakub Mensik beat Taylor Fritz, 7-6, 4-6, 7-6
- 6. 2025 Miami Open F – Jakub Mensik beat Novak Djokovic, 7-6, 7-6
- 7. 2025 Madrid Open 2R – Jakub Mensik beat Ethan Quinn, 7-6, 6-1
- 8. 2025 Madrid Open 3R – Jakub Mensik beat Ben Shelton, 6-1, 6-4
- 9. 2025 Madrid Open 4R – Jakub Mensik beat Alexander Bublik, 6-3, 6-2
On Monday, Mensik will rise to 21st in the world rankings, a career-high for the Czech star, although his performances in the ‘ATP Race’ help tell the full story.
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The 19-year-old has accumulated the seventh most points of any player in the men’s game so far this year, outlining his top-ten credentials.
Top ten players in the Live ‘ATP Race to Turin’
Not only is Mensik on pace to reach the top ten, but he also currently resides in the qualification spots for this year’s ATP Finals in Turin.
It remains to be seen if Mensik can continue in this rich vein of form throughout the remainder of 2025, but you wouldn’t want to bet against it.
The 19-year-old is set to return to action at the Italian Open, which begins on Monday, May 5.