Melbourne VIC, Australia, 4 March 2014 | tennis.com.au

After dropping outside the top 500 in October, young Aussie Luke Saville is rocketing back up the rankings and is within striking distance of his career-high mark.

The 20-year-old this week rose 28 places to world No.369 after his runner-up finish at the City of Onkaparinga Tennis International Pro Tour event two weeks ago.

It puts him within close range of his career-high ranking of No.320, set in April 2013.

Saville stands to rise even higher when next week’s ATP rankings are released, thanks to his victory at the Nyrstar Port Pirie Tennis International at the weekend.

> see where the Aussies stand in the latest ATP rankings

“Never want to win a title by a w/o but never the less it has been a big couple of weeks for me,” Saville tweeted after opponent Jordan Thompson retired from their Port Pirie final.

Thompson is another Australian emerging talent, this week rising 11 spots to world No.342.

The move came following his run to the semifinals at the City of Onkaparinga Tennis International, where he fell to eventual winner Jarmere Jenkins of the United States.

Incredibly, just over a year ago the 19-year-old Sydneysider did not even own an ATP ranking, but has risen rapidly thanks to sustained success on the ITF Futures tour.

His latest result in Port Pirie could see him surpass his previous career-high ranking of 308th, set in November.