Farewell, Great Grand Champion

Roger Federer

One of the greatest of the sport has announced his retirement: Roger Federer, the 14th male Yokozuna (=Grand Champion) of the Open Era, and one of only seven male Dai-Yokozuna (Great Grand Champions - the others are Rod Laver, Ken Rosewall, Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic). 

When Federer's rise began, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi were near the end of their illustrious careers, and at first he battled for succession rights with the likes of Lleyton Hewitt, Marat Safin or Andy Roddick - all career-high Ozeki (=Champions). It soon transpired though that Federer was the best of the class, and in 2004 he ascended to the highest rank of Yokozuna - the first Grand Champion promotion in almost 10 years (after Agassi in 1995). Dai-Yokozuna followed in 2007. By that time, Federer's three-way rivalry with Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic (who would both become Dai-Yokozuna as well) was well under way; it would see all three achieve career records that had been unheard of previously. Together Federer, Nadal and Djokovic established a golden era of men's tennis - that is now nearing its end.

Nadal and Djokovic may have won even a little more than Federer, but Federer was the first who reached hitherto unimaginable heights: he cleared the path that his younger competitors followed, gave them a target to aim for. The elegance of Federer's game is unrivalled: the quick feet that made it seem as if he was hovering over the court; the vision that allowed him to find angles nobody else saw; the wrist flexibility that sometimes made him resemble a squash or badminton player; the fluency, accuracy and effortless power of his serve; the stylish single-handed backhand (even though it lacked a tad reliability and was arguably also his main weakness). Even at age 38, Federer was still competitive in Grand Slam finals - it seemed as if age would never catch up with him. 

Well, age has finally caught up: at the biblical tennis player age of 41, Federer has announced his retirement. Farewell, Great Grand Champion. You will be missed.

P.S.: in the ladies' game, another great has half-announced her withdrawal from the sport: Serena Williams. Different from Federer, Serena has left a back door open though - hence maybe it is still too early for good-byes.

The 2022 US Open: Promotions, Demotions, and Other Stats

2022 US Open Champions:

• Carlos Alcaraz (Maegashira, ex-Komusubi)

• Iga Swiatek (Ozeki)

New Career Sanyaku Rank:

• Casper Ruud, the 37th Male Ozeki of the Open Era

• Ons Jabeur, the 44th Female Ozeki of the Open Era

• Carlos Alcaraz, the 78th Male Sekiwake of the Open Era

• Karen Khachanov, the 94th Male Komusubi of the Open Era

• Frances Tiafoe, the 95th Male Komusubi of the Open Era

• Alja Tomljanovic, the 72nd Female Komusubi of the Open Era

• Caroline Garcia, the 73rd Female Komusubi of the Open Era

Sanyaku Rank Changes

Player (career rank if different)	To	From
Promotions
Ons Jabeur	Ozeki	Sekiwake
Casper Ruud	Ozeki	Komusubi
Carlos Alcaraz	Sekiwake	Maegashira
Karen Khachanov	Komusubi	Maegashira
Frances Tiafoe	Komusubi	Maegashira
Andrey Rublev	Komusubi	Maegashira
Jessica Pegula	Komusubi	Maegashira
Alja Tomljanovic	Komusubi	Maegashira
Aryna Sabalenka (ex-Sekiwake)	Komusubi	Maegashira
Caroline Garcia	Komusubi	Maegashira
Demotions
Alexander Zverev	Sekiwake	Ozeki
Stefanos Tsitsipas	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Ashleigh Barty (ex-Ozeki)	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Elena Rybakina	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Cameron Norrie	Maegashira	Komusubi
Leylah Fernandez (ex-Sekiwake)	Maegashira	Komusubi
Simona Halep (ex-Ozeki)	Maegashira	Komusubi
Tatjana Maria	Maegashira	Komusubi

Kinboshi:
("gold star" - prize awarded to a non-sanyaku ranked competitor for beating an active Yokozuna):

• Frances Tiafoe for beating Dai-Yokozuna Rafael Nadal in Round 4

Other noteworthy developments:

• For the first time since the 2020 US Open, and for the second time only since the 2004 French Open (!), none of the three Dai-Yokozuna (= Great Grand Champion) Novak Djokovic , Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer reached the Grand Slam semifinals. Djokovic and Federer did not participate, Nadal went out in Round 4.

• There is still no active Yokozuna (=Grand Champion) in the ladies' game, although US Open Champion Iga Swiatek is inching closer. She needs to win the 2023 Australian Open or reach the seminfals down under and win the 2023 French Open to get promoted to the highest rank. Two lost finals at the Australian and French open would also do.

• The injured Alexander Zverev lost Ozeki (=Champion) status and got demoted to Sekiwake (=Junior Champion I) as he missed the second consecutive grand slam tournament. He needs to reach the semifinals at the 2023 Australian Open to be re-promoted immediately.

• Nick Kyrgios, ex-Ozeki Matteo Berrettini, and Cori Gauff all held Sekiwake rank with a quarterfinal participatoin. Kyrgios was one win away from an Ozeki promotion. Jannik Sinner held Komusubi (=Junior Champion II) rank.

Sanyaku Ranks Following the 2022 US Open

Men

Career rank 1/	East	Current Rank	West	Career rank 1/
High Sanyaku (Senior Champion Ranks)
Dai-Y	Rafael Nadal	Y	Novak Djokovic	Dai-Y
O	Casper Ruud	O	-	-
Lower Sanyaku (Junior Champion Ranks)
O	Alexander Zverev (o)	S1	Matteo Berrettini	O
S	Nick Kyrgios	S2	Carlos Alcaraz	S
O	Daniil Medvedev	K1	Stefanos Tsitsipas	O
K	Jannik Sinner	K2	Karen Khachanov	K
K	Frances Tiafoe	K3	Andrey Rublev	K

Women

Career rank 1/	East	Current Rank	West	Career rank 1/
High Sanyaku (Senior Champion Ranks)
-	-	Y	-	-
O	Iga Swiatek	O	Ons Jabeur	O
Lower Sanyaku (Junior Champion Ranks)
S	Cori Gauff	S	-
O	Ashleigh Barty	K1	Elena Rybakina	S
K	Jessica Pegula	K2	Alja Tomljanovic	K
S	Aryna Sabalenka	K3	Caroline Garcia	K

1/ Highest sanyaku rank achieved in a player's career
Inactive Yokozuna: Roger Federer (Dai), Serena Williams (Dai), Andy Murray, Venus Williams, Naomi Osaka
(k): kadoban
(o): Sekiwake-Ozeki

Casper Ruud, Ozeki

Casper Ruud

The men's game has a new Ozkei too: Casper Ruud became the 37th male Ozeki (=Champion) of the Open Era by reaching the final at both the 2022 French and US Open. Together these results suffice to clear the 'great hurdle' - the literal meaning of 'Ozeki' in Japanese. 

Ruud's promotion occurs as several "new generation" Ozeki have lost rank in the last couple of tournaments: the injured Alexander Zverev; Daniil Medvedev, who was not allow to play at Wimbledon and underperformed (relative to rank) at the French and US Open; Stefanos Tsitsipas, who had a series of disappointing results, and Matteo Berrettini, who missed Wimbledon with Covid and fell in the US Open quarterfinals to Ruud. 

All these will be Sekiwake (=Junior Champion I) or Komusubi (=Junior Champion II) after the  tournament, sharing these ranks with players who did well at the US Open, namely finalist Carlos Alcaraz (first-time Sekiwake), semifinalists Frances Tiafoe and Karen Khachanov (both first-time Komusubi), and quarterfinalists Nick Kyrgios and Jannik Sinner. 

A full update of the Sanyaku rankings lists will be published once  2022 US Open finals have been played.

Ons Jabeur, Ozeki

Ons Jabeur became the 

Ons Jabeur

44rd female Ozeki (=Champion) of the Open Era by reaching the semi-finals of the 2022 US Open, following her final participation at Wimbledon. Together these results suffice to clear the 'great hurdle' - the literal meaning of 'Ozeki' in Japanese. By now Jabeur has advanced even further and qualified for the US Open final, where she will play fellow Ozeki Iga Swiatek. 

French Open finalist Caspar Ruud also sports a chance for an Ozeki promotion, provided he beats Karen Khachanov in tonight's semifinal. Khachanov has earned a first time promotion to at least Komusubi (=Junior Champion II). Nick Kyrgios and Cori Gauff were also on Ozeki runs, but exited the tournament too early for completing it. Both will be Sekiwake (=Junior Champion I) after the tournament.

A full update of the Sanyaku rankings lists will be published once the 2022 US Open have ended.

The 2022 Wimbledon Tournament: Promotions, Demotions and Other Stats

2022 Wimbledon Champions:

• Novak Djokovic (Dai-Yokozuna)

• Elena Rybakina (Maegashira)

New Career Sanyaku Rank:

• Nick Kyrgios, the 78th Male Sekiwake of the Open Era

• Elena Rybakina, the 59th Female Sekiwake of the Open Era

• Ons Jabeur, the 60st Female Sekiwake of the Open Era

• Jannik Sinner, the 93rd Male Komusubi of the Open Era

• Cameron Norrie, the 94th Male Komusubi of the Open Era

• Tatjana Maria, the 71st Female Komusubi of the Open Era

Sanyaku Rank Changes

Player (career rank if different)	To	From
Promotions
Nick Kyrgios	Sekiwake	Maegashira
Elena Rybakina	Sekiwake	Maegashira
Ons Jabeur	Sekiwake	Maegashira
Jannik Sinner	Komusubi	Maegashira
Caremon Norrie	Komusubi	Maegashira
Simona Halep (ex-Ozeki)	Komusubi	Maegashira
Tatjana Maria	Komusubi	Maegashira
Demotions
Daniil Medvedev	Sekiwake	Ozeki
Stefanos Tsitsipas	Sekiwake	Ozeki
Matteo Berrettini	Sekiwake	Ozeki
Ashleigh Barty	Sekiwake	Ozeki
Caspar Ruud	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Leylah Fernandez	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Cori Gauff	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Felix Auger-Aliassime (ex-Sekiwake)	Maegashira	Komusubi
Carlos Alcaraz	Maegashira	Komusubi
Barbora Krejcikova (ex-Sekiwake)	Maegashira	Komusubi
Danielle Collins (ex-Sekiwake)	Maegashira	Komusubi
Daria Kasatkina	Maegashira	Komusubi
Jessica Pergula	Maegashira	Komusubi

Kinboshi:
("gold star" - prize awarded to a non-sanyaku ranked competitor for beating an active Yokozuna):

• none

Other noteworthy developments:

• Dai-Yokozuna (Great Grand Champion) Novak Djokovic won his 21st grand slam title. He also takes - for the first time in his career - the #1 spot in the results based open area top 20 ranking, as his deeper record in grand slam finals and semifinals more than compensates for the one title that fellow Dai-Yokozuna Rafael Nadal has more. Nadal had to exit injured before the semi-finals, preventing him from defending his spot.

• Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Matteo Berrettini all lost active Ozeki (=Champion) status for failing to reach a grand slam quarterfinal for the second time in a row, altough for different reasons: Medvedev was not allowed to participate for his nationality, Tsitsipas exited early, while Berrettini fell sick. They are Sekiwake-Ozeki now: a semifinal at the US Open would get them back to Ozeki. The other Ozeki, Alexander Zverev and Iga Swiatek, go kadoban - they have to reach the quarterfinals at the US Open to hold rank

• Finalist Nick Kyrgios earned a first time Sekiwake (=Junior Champion I) promotion, more than seven years after ascending to Komusubi (=Junior Champion II) at the 2015 Austrlaian Open. The finalists in the ladies' tournament, Elena Rybakina and Ons Jabeur, also earn a first time Komusubi promotion.

Sanyaku Ranks Following the 2022 Wimbledon Tournament

Men

Career rank 1/	East	Current Rank	West	Career rank 1/
High Sanyaku (Senior Champion Ranks)
Dai-Y	Novak Djokovic	Y	Rafael Nadal	Dai-Y
O	Alexander Zverev (k)	O	-	-
Lower Sanyaku (Junior Champion Ranks)
O	Daniil Medvedev (o)	S1	Stefanos Tsitsipas (o)	O
O	Matteo Berrettini (o)	S2	Nick Kyrgios	S
S	Casper Ruud	K1	Jannik Sinner	K
K	Cameron Norrie	K2	-	-

Women

Career rank 1/	East	Current Rank	West	Career rank 1/
High Sanyaku (Senior Champion Ranks)
-	-	Y	-	-
O	Iga Swiatek (k)	O	-
Lower Sanyaku (Junior Champion Ranks)
O	Ashleigh Barty (o)	S1	Elena Rybakina	S
S	Ons Jabeur	S2	-
S	Leylah Fernandez	K1	Cori Gauff	S
O	Simona Halep	K2	Tatjana Maria	K

1/ Highest sanyaku rank achieved in a player's career
Inactive Yokozuna: Roger Federer (Dai), Serena Williams (Dai), Andy Murray, Venus Williams, Naomi Osaka
(k): kadoban
(o): Sekiwake-Ozeki

The 2022 French Open: Promotions, Demotions and Other Stats

2022 French Open Champions:

• Rafael Nadal (Dai-Yokozuna)

• Iga Swiatek (Komusubi, ex-Sekiwake)

New Career Sanyaku Rank:

• Iga Swiatek, the 43rd Female Ozeki of the Open Era

• Caspar Ruud, the 77th Male Sekiwake of the Open Era

• Cori Gauff, the 58th Female Sekiwake of the Open Era

• Carlos Alcaraz, the 93rd Male Komusubi of the Open Era

• Jessica Pegula, the 70th Female Komusubi of the Open Era

Sanyaku Rank Changes

Player (career rank if different)	To	From
Promotions
Iga Swiatek	Ozeki	Komusubi
Caspar Ruud	Sekiwake	Maegashira
Cori Gauff	Sekiwake	Maegashira
Marin Cilic (ex-Ozeki)	Komusubi	Maegashira
Carlos Alcaraz	Komusubi	Maegashira
Daria Kasatkina	Komusubi	Maegashira
Jessica PegulaCarlos Alcaraz	Komusubi	Maegashira
Demotions
Felix Auger-Aliassime	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Barbora Krejcikova	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Danielle Collins	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Denis Shapovalov	Maegashira	Komusubi
Karolina Pliskova (ex-Ozeki)	Maegashira	Komusubi
Aryna Sabalenka (ex-Sekiwake)	Maegashira	Komusubi
Maria Sakkari (ex-Sekiwake)	Maegashira	Komusubi
Emma Raducanu (ex-Sekiwake)	Maegashira	Komusubi
Madison Keys (ex-Ozeki)	Maegashira	Komusubi

Kinboshi:
("gold star" - prize awarded to a non-sanyaku ranked competitor for beating an active Yokozuna):

• none

Other noteworthy developments:

• Dai-Yokozuna (Great Grand Champion) Rafael Nadal won his 22st grand slam title. He is now two titles clear of both Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, which more then compensates for the latter's deeper record in terms of final and semifinal participations. Nadal therefore moves - for the first time in his career - to the #1 spot in the results based open area top 20 ranking.

• Ozeki and 2022 Australian Open Champion Ashleigh Barty retired surprisingly before the French Open. Sanyaku tennis will carry her in the rankings though until she moves organically out of them, for now she is a kadoban Ozeki. The ladies' game remains without an activie Yokozuna - French Open winner and newly promoted Ozeki Iga Swiatek would have to win the 2022 Wimbledon tournament to change this.

• Alexander Zverev defended Ozeki rank, but had to retire injured in his semifinal with Rafael Nadal. Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas went out early while Matteo Berrettini withdrew. They therefore go kadbon and need to reach the quarterfinals at Wimbledon to defend Ozeki rank. Medvedev won't have this opportunity as the Wimbledon organizers disqualified him from participating on the basis of his nationality - a decision that Sanyaku Tennis considers mistaken

Sanyaku Ranks Following the 2022 French Open

Men

Career rank 1/	East	Current Rank	West	Career rank 1/
High Sanyaku (Senior Champion Ranks)
Dai-Y	Rafael Nadal	Y	Novak Djokovic	Dai-Y
O	Alexander Zverev	O1	Daniil Medvedev (k)	O
O	Stefanos Tsitsipas (k)	O2	Matteo Berrettini (k)	O
Lower Sanyaku (Junior Champion Ranks)
S	Caspar Ruud	S	-	-
S	Felix Auger-Aliassime	K	Carlos Alcaraz	K

Women

Career rank 1/	East	Current Rank	West	Career rank 1/
High Sanyaku (Senior Champion Ranks)
-	-	Y	-	-
O	Ashleigh Barty (k)	O	Iga Swiatek	O
Lower Sanyaku (Junior Champion Ranks)
S	Leylah Fernandez	S	Cori Gauff	S
S	Barbora Krejcikova	K1	Danielle Collins	S
K	Daria Kasatkina	K2	Jessica Pegula	K

1/ Highest sanyaku rank achieved in a player's career
Inactive Yokozuna: Roger Federer (Dai), Serena Williams (Dai), Andy Murray, Venus Williams, Naomi Osaka
(k): kadoban
(o): Sekiwake-Ozeki

Iga Swiatek, Ozeki

Iga Swiatek

Iga Swiatek became the 43rd female Ozeki (=Champion) of the Open Era today by winning the 2022 French Open ladies' tournament. 

Swiatek qualified in two different ways for her new career rank: (i) by reaching the final of the French Open following her semifinal participation at the 2022 Australian Open, and (ii) by winning the second grand slam title of her career after victory at the 2020 French Open. Either achievement on its own would have sufficed to cross the 'great hurdle' (the literal meaning of 'Ozeki' in Japanese).

There are more career promotions: Swiatek's final opponent Cori Gauff earned a maiden Sekiwake (=Junior Champion I) promotion; repeat quarterfinalist Jessica Pegula  becomes a Komusubi (Junior Champion II for the first time in her career. In the men's game, finalist Casper Ruud will become a first-time Sekiwake (independent of whether he wins or loses the final tomorrow), repeat quarterfinalist Carlos Alcaraz will join the Sanyaku (=championship ranks) as a Komusubi. 

A full update will be published once the 2022 French Open have completed.

Fare Well, Champion

A career-high Ozeki (=Champion) has announced his retirement from the sport: Juan Martin del Potro, the 27th male Ozeki of the open era. 

Juan Martin del Potro

Del Potro crossed the "great hurdle" (this is what 'Ozeki' means literally in Japanese) for the first time in 2009, when he won the US Open in 2009 as a 20-year old, following a semi-final at the 2009 French Open. In the semifinals and in the final, Del Potro defeated both Yokozuna (=Grand Champions)  in succession - Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. He obtained active Ozeki status for a second time in 2018 after a series of strong grand slam tournaments, peaking with another US Open final. Del Potro also won a bronze and a silver medal and the 2012/2016 Olympics respectively. 

Del Potro's ability to generate speed and raw power was unique and feared by his opponents, his trademark thunderbolt flat forehand was an almost undefeatable weapon when he hit it cleanly. However, his career was interrupted time and again by long stretches of injury: in 2010, 2013-16, and now again since 2019. His large frame - del Potro is almost 2 meters tall and weighs close to 100 kilos - did unfortunately not take too well to the strains of professional tennis, otherwise he may well have had the potential for Yokozuna. 

The Argentine was one of the most humble and sympathetic  personalities on the professional tennis tour and almost universally liked. He is leaving the tour at 33 years of age. 

Fare well, champion. You will be missed.

The 2022 Australian Open: Promotions, Demotions and Other Stats

2022 Australian Open Champions:

• Rafael Nadal (Dai-Yokozuna)

• Ashleigh Barty (Ozeki)

New Career Sanyaku Rank:

• Daniil Medvedev, the 35th Male Ozeki of the Open Era

• Matteo Berrettini, the 36th Male Ozeki of the Open Era

• Danielle Collins, the 58th Female Sekiwake of the Open Era

Sanyaku Rank Changes

Player (career rank if different)	To	From
Promotions
Daniil Medvedev	Ozeki	Sekiwake
Matteo Berrettini	Ozeki	Sekiwake
Stefanos Tsitsipas	Ozeki	Sekiwake
Danielle Collins	Sekiwake	Maegashira
Denis Shapovalov	Komusubi	Maegashira
Madison Keys (ex-Ozeki)	Komusubi	Maegashira
Iga Swiatek (ex-Sekiwake)	Komusubi	Maegashira
Demotions
Karolina Pliskova (ex-Ozeki)	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Aryna Sabalenka	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Maria Sakkari	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Emma Raducanu	Komusubi	Sekiwake
Leylah Fernandez	Komusubi	Sekiwake

Kinboshi:
("gold star" - prize awarded to a non-sanyaku ranked competitor for beating an active Yokozuna):

• Amanda Anisimova (ex-Komusubi) - for beating Yokozuna Naomi Osaka in Round 3

Other noteworthy developments:

• Dai-Yokozuna (Great Grand Champion) Rafael Nadal won his 21st grand slam title and therefore the most slams of any male tennis player in the open era.
• In terms of the pure stats, however, Nadal remains #3 in the open area top 20 ranking - behind Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, who both have 20 titles but participated in many more grand slam finals and semifinals. This said, Sanyaku Tennis does not really participate in the so-called GOAT debate. To us, every player who reached Dai-Yokozuna status represents the pinnacle of the sport, with unique achievements each in his or her own way. Splitting hair at this level is silly: you don't compare royalty.

• Finalist Daniil Medvedev got promoted to Ozeki (=Champion), but he missed out by a whisker on back-to-back grand slam titles and hence on an immediate Yokozuna (=Grand Champion) promotion - he would have been the 19th male Yokzouna of the open era. Medvedev looks every bit like a future Yokozuna, but one never knows. Semifinalist Matteo Berrettini also got promoted to Ozeki, while the other semi-finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas earned a re-repromotion to the same rank.
• The "next gen" fills four Ozeki slots now and has truly arrived in the sanyaku rankings (the fourth Ozeki Alexander Zverev, who lost early and goes kadoban - i.e. needs a quarterfinal to the French open to defend rank). This said, noone has made it to Yokozuna yet - this is still reserved to the old masters, Nadal and Djokovic (the third master, Federer, is an inactive Yokozuna at present).

• In the ladies's game, Ashleigh Barty won her third grand slam title and confimed Ozeki rank. She is now the top tier in ladies' tennis, as both Yokozuna - Dai-Yokozuna Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka - failed to make the semifinals in four consecutive grand slam tournaments (Williams did not participate this time, Osaka lost in round 3). Hence both are listed as inactive Yokozuna now, leaving ladies' tennis without an active Grand Champion. By contrast, the lower Sanyaku ranks (Sekiwake and Komusubi) are filled with no less than 9 female players who had success at the last three grand slam tournaments, among them Australian Open finalist Danielle Collins.

Sanyaku Ranks Following the 2022 Australian Open

Men

Career rank 1/	East	Current Rank	West	Career rank 1/
High Sanyaku (Senior Champion Ranks)
Dai-Y	Rafael Nadal	Y	Novak Djokovic	Dai-Y
O	Alexander Zverev (k)	O1	Daniil Medvedev	O
O	Stefanos Tsitsipas	O2	Matteo Berrettini	O
Lower Sanyaku (Junior Champion Ranks)
S	Felix Auger-Aliassime	S	-	-
K	Denis Shapovalov	K	-	-

Women

Career rank 1/	East	Current Rank	West	Career rank 1/
High Sanyaku (Senior Champion Ranks)
-	-	Y	-	-
O	Ashleigh Barty	O	-	-
Lower Sanyaku (Junior Champion Ranks)
S	Barbora Krejcikova	S	Danielle Collins	S
O	Karolina Pliskova	K1	Aryna Sabalenka	S
S	Maria Sakkari	K2	Emma Raducanu	S
S	Leylah Fernandez	K3	Madison Keys	O
S	Iga Swiatek	K4	-	-

1/ Highest sanyaku rank achieved in a player's career
Inactive Yokozuna: Roger Federer (Dai), Serena Williams (Dai), Andy Murray, Venus Williams, Naomi Osaka
(k): kadoban
(o): Sekiwake-Ozeki

Daniil Medvedev and Matteo Berrettini, Ozeki

Daniil Medvedev

Double Ozeki (=Champion) promotion in mens' tennis: Daniil Medvedev and Matteo Berrettini both crossed the "great hurdle" (this is what "Ozeki" means literally in Japanese) at the 2022 Australian open to become the 35th and the 36th male Ozeki of the open era (the sanyaku rank lists will be updated once the tournament has completed). 

Medvedev reached Ozeki by following up on his triumph at the 2021 US Open with another grand slam quarterfinal participation. By now he has even reached the semifinals; if he wins the tournament he would earn a promotion to the 19th male Yokozuna (=Grand Champion) of the open era. 

Matteo Berrettini

Berrettini plays a third consecutive successful grand slam tournament: final at Wimbledon, quarterfinals in New York, (at least) semifinal in Melbourne. Different from Medvedev, he cannot earn a Yokozuna promotion at this tournament, however.

Elsewhere in the tournament, Stefanos Tsitsipas earned re-promotion to Ozeki by reaching the semifinals after two weaker grand slam tournaments. In the ladies' game, both Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka will lose active Yokozuna status, as they failed to make a grand slam semifinal for four consecutive tournaments - Williams did not participate, Osaka went out in round 3. This will leave Ashleigh Barty as the only female player with a high sanyaku rank (Yokozuna or Ozeki) after the 2022 Australian Open.

Full updates will come once the tournament completes.