Kazakh tennis player Alexander Shevchenko rose 16 spots in the latest ATP rankings after a strong showing at the Swiss Open Gstaad-2026. His compatriot Alexander Bublik, who exited in the first round in Gstaad, remained at No. 11, inching closer to the top 10, according to infohub.kz.
The 25-year-old Shevchenko, playing in just his second ATP semifinal, took a set off Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas before losing 4-6, 6-3, 4-6. The highest-altitude ATP tournament in Europe (1,050 meters above sea level) was eventually won by Tsitsipas, who defeated Belgium's Raphael Collignon in the final 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-3.
Thanks to his success in Gstaad, Shevchenko jumped 16 spots to No. 84. The Rostov native, who has been representing Kazakhstan since 2024, switched sporting citizenship when he was ranked world No. 45.
Last year's champion in high-altitude Gstaad, Alexander Bublik, lost in the first round to France's Quentin Halys 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-7(5) and stayed at No. 11.
Both Kazakh players will compete this week in Kitzbühel, Austria. Bublik will again have to defend the title and ranking points he earned in 2025. As the top seed and defending champion, he receives a bye in the first round and will then face the winner of the match between Argentina's Facundo Diaz Acosta (108) and Italian qualifier Federico Cina (184). Shevchenko will start against sixth seed Jan-Lennard Struff of Germany (41).
The Austrian Open, known as the Generali Open since 2015, is one of the oldest tennis tournaments, having been held in various formats since 1894. It is a men's-only clay-court event. Before settling in Kitzbühel, it was held in Prague (during the Austro-Hungarian era), Salzburg, Pörtschach am Wörthersee, and Vienna. The ATP 250 tournament has a prize fund of €612,500. Past winners include American Pete Sampras, Croatian Goran Ivanišević, Argentine Guillermo Vilas, Austrian Thomas Muster, and other stars.