Tennis News: Grigor Dimitrov, Andrey Rublev and Alex de Minaur

Several titles have already been handed out in 2024, and we have also learned that Rafael Nadal tweaked his ship and will not be participating in the Australian Open. That is not good news for tennis fans. Still, the move by Nadal is probably wise if he wants to make sure he can play for most of the year instead of just the beginning.

Those titles handed out include Coco Gauff winning the ASB Classic, Elena Rybakina dominating Aryna Sabalenka in the Brisbane International final, and Germany defeating Poland at the United Cup. We will get to another couple of winners in just a second.

We are still waiting on the final word about the health of Novak Djokovic's wrist. He struggled with the injury during the United Cup. If he is not 100 percent for the Australian Open, anyone else could win and that makes for an exciting event. Here is some other news to begin your week.

Grigor Dimitrov's parents leave him

What a great beginning to 2024 for Grigor Dimitrov. He defeated Holger Rune in the Brisbane International final 7-6(5) 6-4. In doing so, Dimitrov won his first ATP title in six years and the Bulgarian took home his ninth career title.

But before the final against Rune, Dimitrov had to say goodbye to his parents who had been watching him in Brisbane. They had a flight booked and had to leave during the final so I am not sure what that says about Dimitrov's parents having enough faith in him to think he might make the final, though. Post-match, Dimitrov said, "I told them goodbye before the match and I was checking the clock a few times to see if I would finish the match a little earlier but unfortunately it was not that easy."

Andrey Rublev takes Hong Kong

Another player who needed a good start to the year was Andrey Rublev and he got that. Rublev beat Emil Ruusuvuori 6-4 6-4 in the Hong Kong Open final to win his 15th ATP tour title. Rublev had an easier time in the final than in his previous two matches when he had to go three sets against Arthur Fils and Shang Juncheng.

Rublev committed only 6 unforced errors in the final. If he can play that efficiently while keeping his temper under control, maybe he could finally make it past a quarterfinal in a Grand Slam event. He is a well-liked player so good things should happen to him.

Alex de Minaur climbs the rankings

For the first time in his career, and after a great showing at the United Cup, Australian de Minaur moved into the top ten of the ATP rankings. He is ranked No. 10 this week. De Mianur was ranked No. 12 last week.

Germany's Alexander Zverev also moved up in the rankings and flipped spots with Stefanos Tsitsipas. Zverev is No. 6 and Tsitsipas No. 7. The top five remains unchanged with 1-5 being Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, Jannik Sinner, and Rublev.

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