1 – Tallon Griekspoor
The top 15 Dutch male players of 2023 are headed by Tallon Griekspoor. The North Holland native already won two ATP titles in 2023 (in Pune and Rosmalen), defeating several big names in the process. For a long time, Griekspoor had to concede to Van de Zandschulp as the best Dutchman in the ATP Ranking, but his strong results in 2023 have allowed Griekspoor to overtake his compatriot. That Griekspoor can win titles has been established for some time. In 2021, he already impressed by winning no fewer than eight Challenger titles and recording a string of 26 consecutive victories. Who knows what else awaits the current number 36 in the ATP rankings.
2 – Botic van de Zandschulp
Botic van de Zandschulp topped the list of the top 15 best men's tennis players of 2023 for a long time, but at the time of writing, he has been surpassed by Griekspoor. Van de Zandschulp was briefly ranked 22nd in the world in 2022 and currently has to settle for 45th in the ATP Ranking. The 27-year-old player from Wageningen achieved his best results on the ATP Tour in Munich. Van de Zandschulp reached the final there twice, but never won a title. Both times, he faced Holger Rune: in 2022, Van de Zandschulp was forced to retire, while in 2023, Rune ultimately emerged victorious.
3 – Gijs Brouwer
Brouwer achieved his greatest success to date in his home country. At Rotterdam Ahoy, the then-world number 160 surprised everyone by defeating the Danish top talent Rune. This resulted in a significant jump in the ATP rankings, where he now sits at number 145. It's therefore expected that we'll likely see this left-handed tennis player at more ATP tournaments in the near future. Last summer, for example, Brouwer made his Wimbledon debut, where he immediately faced Alexander Zverev. Brouwer certainly performed well, but he did lose to his German opponent.
4 – Jelle Sels
While we often encounter the aforementioned names at ATP tournaments, Jelle Sels mostly plays his matches at Challenger tournaments. In October 2022, Sels won his last Challenger title, defeating Jiri Lehecka and Vasek Pospisil in France. Shortly before that, he also reached the final in Tulln, Austria, where he ultimately defeated Slovakian Jozef Kovalik. At the time of writing, Sels is ranked 182nd in the ATP rankings.
5 – Jesper de Jong
Jesper de Jong is a talented 23-year-old tennis player coached by Bas Coulier. He has made two ATP appearances, unfortunately losing both. Despite his young age, De Jong is already making good progress on the Challenger circuit. His highlight came in 2021, when he won the title in Almaty, Kazakhstan. In the final, he defeated Tomas Barrios 6-1/6-2. His last title came in March 2023, when he won an ITF tournament in Quinta do Lago, Portugal.
6 – Max Houkes
Max Houkes, ranked sixth in the "Best Dutch Men's Tennis Players 2023" list, primarily competes in Challengers and ITF tournaments. In 2022, he won two ITF tournaments in his home country, in Oldenzaal and Haren, and also secured victories in two ITF tournaments in Casablanca, Morocco. He also qualified for the main draw of the 2023 ABN Amro Open Rotterdam, but the 23-year-old was defeated by Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili. In 2023, Houkes won two titles: in March, he won the ITF tournament in Palmanova, and in July, he won the ITF tournament in The Hague.
7 - Robin Haase
Robin Haase was the standard-bearer of Dutch men's tennis for many years, but has since dropped out of the global top 300. His highest position in the ATP rankings was 33rd, partly thanks to his ATP titles. The 35-year-old Haase achieved this twice (2011 and 2012) in Kitzbühel, Austria. His first tournament victory came in a final against Spaniard Albert Montañes, while in 2012 he defeated German Philipp Kohlschreiber in the final. Haase also won thirteen Challenger titles and several major doubles titles. His last doubles title came in February 2023 in Montpellier, partnering with Matwé Middelkoop.
8 – Tim van Rijthoven
He made his big breakthrough at the 2022 Libéma Open in Rosmalen and is therefore perhaps slightly better known than some of the names who surpassed him on the "Top 15 Male Tennis Players of 2023" list: Tim van Rijthoven. Van Rijthoven was admitted to his home country with a wildcard and had already caused quite a stir by defeating Matthew Ebden and American Taylor Fritz in succession. When Hugo Gaston was subsequently defeated and Van Rijthoven reached the semifinals, the Netherlands really began to get to know the 26-year-old protégé of coach Igor Sijsling. Yet, the game wasn't over yet: in the semifinals, Felix Auger-Aliassime proved no match for Van Rijthoven over three sets, after which the Dutchman convincingly defeated the powerful Daniil Medvedev in the final (6-4/6-1). Recently, however, the service cannon has been struggling with injuries, which has prevented him from continuing his good form and has now dropped out of the global top 400.
9 – Alec Deckers
Like Sels and Houkes, Alec Deckers has also won several ITF tournaments. In 2021, he lifted the trophy on the hard court in Doha, and at the end of 2022, he also won the tournaments in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt (October) and Heraklion, Greece (November). Not unimportant: Deckers (23) is the son of former tennis player Richard Krajicek (currently tournament director of the ABN Amro Open in Rotterdam) and Daphne Deckers.
10 – Jarno Jans
Jarno Jans (also 23) rounds out the top 10 Dutch tennis players, and what's striking about his career is that he's particularly in the spotlight at tournaments in Tunisia. He won two tournaments in both 2021 and 2022, and remarkably, all of these victories took place in Monastir, Tunisia. At the time of writing, Jans is ranked 742nd in the ATP rankings, having briefly been ranked 467th in the world in 2022.
At the time of writing, the top 15 male tennis players from the Netherlands in 2023 are completed by Sidané Pontjodikromo (11), Ryan Nijboer (12), Guy den Ouden (13), Brian Bozemoj (14) and Buvaysar Gadamauri (15).
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