Ranking Movers: Popyrin rises in Doha

Alexei Popyrin was back to his winning ways in Qatar, while Storm Hunter will re-enter familiar territory this week.


Tuesday 24 February 2026
Jackson Mansell
Doha, Qatar
Australia's Alexei Popyrin reacts after a point against Italy's Jannik Sinner during their men's singles match at the Qatar Open tennis tournament in Doha on February 18, 2026. (Photo by Karim JAAFAR / AFP via Getty Images)

Men’s singles

Alexei Popyrin has re-entered the ATP singles top 50 after recording his first victory of 2026 in Doha last week. 

The 26-year-old’s 6-0 6-2 statement win over local Mubarak Al-Harrasi helped him climb six places to world No.47. He was also competitive in his second-round match against No.2 seed Jannik Sinner, ultimately falling 6-3 7-5. 

READ: Popyrin sets up Sinner clash in Doha

Popyrin aims to build on those performances in Dubai this week, where he faces Poland’s Kamil Majchrzak in his first match. 

Adam Walton also enjoyed a rankings jump after his trip to the final 16 in Delray Beach. The lucky loser upstaged Canadian Gabriel Diallo before almost brewing an upset against No.5 seed Tommy Paul. He also rose six places to world No.87. 

Aussie top 10
PlayerRankingMove
Alex de MinaurNo.60
Alexei PopyrinNo.47+6
James DuckworthNo.83-3
Adam WaltonNo.87+6
Aleksandar VukicNo.91-3
Chris O'ConnellNo.105-10
Tristan SchoolkateNo.1180
Jordan ThompsonNo.113-2
Rinky HijikataNo.115-2
Dane SweenyNo.133
+1

Men’s doubles

Alexei Popyrin’s unlikely partnership with Stefanos Tsitsipas helped him return to the Australian men’s doubles top 10. 

The pair progressed to the Qatar Open quarterfinals, where they lost to eventual champions Henry Patten and Harri Heliovaara in two tiebreak sets.

Popyrin climbed 18 spots to world No.118 as a result, a new career-high doubles ranking. 

Aussie top 10
PlayerRankingMove
John-Patrick SmithNo.400
John PeersNo.56-1
Marc PolmansNo.630
Rinky HijikataNo.64+1
Jordan ThompsonNo.66+1
Matt EbdenNo.70-2
Jason KublerNo.75-1
Matthew RomiosNo.81+1
Blake BayldonNo.105-6
Alexei PopyrinNo.118
+18

Women’s singles

Kimberly Birrell is back inside the top 80 after her performance in Dubai. Having advanced through qualifying with wins over Tereza Valentova and Katie Volynets, Birrell prevailed against German Tatjana Maria in her opening main-draw match in a near three-hour encounter. 

While she fell to Australian Open 2026 champion Elena Rybakina in the second round, her ranking improved 14 places to world No.80. 

Daria Kasatkina also had a slight increase in her ranking after defeating Laura Siegemund 6-2 6-3 in Dubai. She was unable to build on that, however, after a right hip injury forced her withdrawal from the tournament. 

Aussie top 10
PlayerRankingMove
Maya JointNo.29-1
Daria KasatkinaNo.58+3
Ajla TomljanovicNo.74-1
Kimberly BirrellNo.80+14
Talia GibsonNo.110+1
Maddison InglisNo.127-2
Priscilla HonNo.136-6
Emerson JonesNo.146-2
Taylah PrestonNo.150-2
Olivia GadeckiNo.180-1

Women’s doubles

Storm Hunter will regain the mantle of Australia’s top-ranked women’s doubles player this week in Austin, where she and world No.9 Taylor Townsend are the No.1 seeds.

Ellen Perez surpassed Hunter as the Australian No.1 in August 2024 following the Toronto WTA 1000. Now, only 17 points behind Perez following the latest rankings update, Hunter will leapfrog her compatriot after her first-round match, given Perez is not scheduled to play this week. 

Victory in Austin could see Hunter climb into the top 20 for the first time since returning from her Achilles injury in February 2025. 

Aussie top 10
PlayerRankingMove
Ellen PerezNo.240
Storm HunterNo.25+1
Maya JointNo.330
Olivia GadeckiNo.73+1
Talia GibsonNo.1090
Kimberly BirrellNo.110+1
Priscilla HonNo.145-16
Petra HuleNo.200-5
Elena MicicNo.225-4
Alexandra OsborneNo.227-4

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