Following his victory in Aix-en-Provence, Andy Murray has reached his highest ranking in five years.

Andy Murray The Mutua Madrid Open, a Masters 1000 tournament for the men and a WTA 1000 event for the women, saw a number of notable movers on the ATP and WTA rankings today. However, one of the most significant rating rises resulted from a Challenger event last week.

Andy Murray won the Challenger 175 championship at Aix-en-Provence, France, although most people’s attention was focused on Madrid. He overcame a set deficit to upset No. 17-ranked Tommy Paul in the championship match, 2-6, 6-1, 6-2.

It was Andy Murray first victory on any court since he won the ATP 250 tournament in Antwerp in 2019, his first victory on clay since he won the Masters 1000 tournament in Rome in 2016, and the longest time between Challenger championship victories in Challenger history.

What was his prize for winning at Aix-en-Provence? On the latest ATP rankings, the former No. 1 jumps from No. 52 to No. 42, Andy Murray which is really his highest position in five years since he reached No. 39 the week of May 7, 2018. This is his greatest ranking since he returned to the circuit following his initial hip surgery, while he was still off the tour after having his first hip surgery in January 2018. He returned to action in June 2018 ranked No. 156. In 2019, he will also have a second hip operation.

Andy Murray has an excellent chance to get even more points over the next weeks as he didn’t compete in Rome or Roland Garros last year.

Andy Murray third Challenger victory in his career came at Aix-en-Provence. at 2005, when he was 18 years old, he won his first two races at Aptos, California, and Binghamton, New York.

Madrid caused significant alterations to the ATP rankings as well: Aslan Karatsev, a former No. 14, climbs from No. 121 to No. 53 after making it through qualifying to reach his first Masters 1000 semifinal; Jan-Lennard Struff, who had previously reached as high as No. 29 in 2020, soars from No. 65 to a new career-high of No. 28; Zhang Zhizhen climbs from No. 99 to No. 69, smashing his previous career-high of No. 91; and Aslan

On the WTA rankings, Caroline Garcia and Coco Gauff return to Nos. 4 and 5, while Elena Rybakina jumps from No. 7 to a new high of No. 6 after losing her opening match in Madrid. Ons Jabeur drops from No. 4 to No. 7 after being unable to defend her title due to injury.

Also Read : Judy Murray’s reaction after her son Andy Murray won a challenger championship after 17 years.

And a special congratulations to two women who enter the WTA doubles rankings this week’s Top 10: After making it to the Madrid semifinals with Leylah Fernandez, American Taylor Townsend climbs from No. 14 to No. 6, while Beatriz Haddad Maia climbs from No. 20 to No. 10 after winning the WTA 1000 tournament with Victoria Azarenka.

With Madison Keys and Caty McNally, Townsend reached the US Open final and the Roland Garros semifinals last year. She also won two WTA 500 titles in Adelaide earlier this year with different partners. Most recently, she reached another final in Miami six weeks ago with Fernandez.

The competition for No. 1 also intensifies this week.

During the two weeks of Rome, Novak Djokovic will spend his record-breaking 386th and 387th career weeks at the top of the ATP rankings, but if Carlos Alcaraz merely plays his first match in Rome—needing to win it or not—he would reclaim the top place after the competition on May 22nd.

Currently, there are only five ranking points separating the two (6,775 to 6,770). whereas Alcaraz missed the competition due to an injury, Djokovic is defending 1,000 points in Rome for winning the championship a year ago, whereas Alcaraz is defending zero points—and a loss in the first round would still award him 10 points.

No matter what happens during the WTA 1000 tournament, Iga Swiatek will maintain her top spot after Rome, but No. 2-ranked Aryna Sabalenka may continue to close the distance. The difference going into the competition was 1,744 points (9,625 to 7,881). While Sabalenka is defending 350 points for making the semifinals (where she lost to Swiatek), Swiatek is defending 900 points for winning the title last year. Even in the most extreme case, if Swiatek loses in her opening match and Sabalenka wins the title, Swiatek would still maintain the top rank (by 204 points). This year’s points distribution has altered somewhat since it is now a 96-draw.