ATP Rankings 2025 Season Review: Biggest Risers and Fallers
By Joey Tennis Balls · match preview
Written January 13, 2026, about the events of that week. For today's numbers see the live Elo & Glicko rankings or who is moving now.
The 2025 ATP Tour season ended with a lot of movement in the rankings. The race for World No. 1 gets most of the headlines, but much of the change happens further down the top 100. In 2025 that meant fast rises for young players and returning veterans, and steep drops for established names struggling with form and fitness. The year-end rankings also show how quickly the 52-week rolling system rewards and punishes.
The Skyrocketing Risers
The biggest climber was Filip Misolic, who rose 235 places from outside the top 300 to World No. 80. His consistency on the Challenger tour carried over to the main tour, and he is one to watch next season.
Valentin Vacherot and American Learner Tien also made big jumps. Vacherot rose to No. 31, just outside the top 30, a late breakthrough, while Tien's climb to No. 28 puts him among the leading prospects in American tennis. At 20, Tien is on a similar path to Joao Fonseca (19). Tien finished the season by winning his first ATP 250 title and the NextGen ATP Finals. Fonseca broke into the top 25, finishing the year at a career-high No. 24.
Veterans moved up too. Marin Cilic (+109 ranks) and Reilly Opelka (+119 ranks) came back from injury and are again dangerous floaters in any draw.
Most Improved Players of 2025
| Player | Age | Previous Rank (Jan) | Current Rank (Dec) | Movement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| F. Misolic | 24 | 315 | 80 | +235 |
| V. Royer | 24 | 203 | 57 | +146 |
| E. Spizzirri | 24 | 231 | 89 | +142 |
| D. Svrcina | 23 | 228 | 95 | +133 |
| V. Vacherot | 27 | 162 | 31 | +131 |
| E. Nava | 24 | 213 | 88 | +125 |
| R. Opelka | 28 | 171 | 52 | +119 |
| M. Cilic | 37 | 182 | 73 | +109 |
| E. Quinn | 21 | 169 | 70 | +99 |
| T. Atmane | 23 | 156 | 63 | +93 |
| L. Tien | 20 | 120 | 28 | +92 |
| P. Carreno Busta | 34 | 184 | 93 | +91 |
| J. Fonseca | 19 | 113 | 24 | +89 |
| T. Schoolkate | 24 | 173 | 100 | +73 |
| C. Garin | 29 | 151 | 79 | +72 |
| S. Mochizuki | 22 | 170 | 99 | +71 |
| K. Majchrzak | 29 | 117 | 62 | +55 |
| J. Cerundolo | 24 | 140 | 86 | +54 |
| A. Davidovich Fokina | 26 | 68 | 14 | +54 |
| A. Kovacevic | 27 | 108 | 60 | +48 |
The Hardest Falls
Several familiar names fell sharply in 2025, mostly because of injury. Players who could not defend their points lost them. Thanasi Kokkinakis had the biggest drop, 377 spots to No. 454, largely because recurring fitness problems kept him out for long stretches of the season. Zhizhen Zhang fell outside the top 400 after a significant shoulder injury. Both show how quickly an injury can cost a player his ranking.
Biggest Ranking Drops of 2025
| Player | Age | Previous Rank (Jan) | Current Rank (Dec) | Movement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T. Kokkinakis | 29 | 77 | 454 | -377 |
| P. Kotov | 27 | 99 | 465 | -366 |
| Z. Zhang | 29 | 47 | 410 | -363 |
| T. Daniel | 32 | 84 | 376 | -292 |
| J. Shang | 20 | 50 | 253 | -203 |
| S. Nagal | 28 | 96 | 277 | -181 |
| F. Coria | 33 | 97 | 269 | -172 |
| T. Seyboth Wild | 25 | 76 | 217 | -141 |
| F. Diaz Acosta | 25 | 78 | 212 | -134 |
| R. Safiullin | 28 | 62 | 172 | -110 |
Conclusion
Heading into 2026, several questions stand out. Can Fonseca, Misolic and Tien consolidate their gains and challenge for major titles? Can Vacherot maintain this level? Can Kokkinakis and Zhang come back? The climb to the top is steep, but as this year's data shows, the slide down can be faster.
Data compares rankings from Jan 6, 2025 to Dec 29, 2025.