Gators in the Pros: Alumni Summer Updates
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Alumni of the Gators Men’s Tennis program have competed all over the world in several pro tournaments this past summer. Many of the players saw changes in their ATP rankings and have shown improvement in their overall performances.
The Gator greats include Ben Shelton, Diego Hidalgo, Johannes Ingildsen, Oliver Crawford, Andres “Andy” Andrade, Alfredo Perez, Abdullah Shelbayh, Will Grant and Axel Nefve. Each of these players have contributed to the program in big ways, with four athletes being members of the 2021 National Championship team. In their pro careers, each athlete has made some headway in their rankings with many of them improving.
One of the biggest names in the tennis world at the moment is Ben Shelton for his powerful serves, entertaining celebrations and overall performance in the pro tournaments. This summer alone, Shelton made his first quarterfinal appearance at Wimbledon where he faced off against No. 1 Jannik Sinner for the second time this year and made it to the Round of 16 at Roland Garros where he faced off against No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz. Shelton has also played in several other ATP tournaments, including the Mubadala Citi DC Open, the Mallorca Championships and the Boss Open in Germany to name a few. Shelton’s performances in these summer tournaments have propelled him to becoming No. 7 in the world in three short weeks.
Other Gators to improve their rankings throughout the summer have been Crawford, Andrade, Perez, Grant and Nefve. Crawford and Perez both moved up three rankings, Andrade moved up eight rankings, Grant moved up five rankings and Nefve moved up ten rankings. While they may not be playing in Grand Slam Tournaments, each player is making it far into the ITF, ATP and Challenger Tour tournaments.
These Gators can be expected to compete in upcoming tournaments like the US Open taking place Aug. 24 to Sept. 7, 2025, the Laver Cup taking place Sept. 19-21, 2025, and several other ITF and ATP tournaments around the world.
Updated Rankings
| Athlete | Time with the Program | ATP Ranking |
|---|---|---|
| Ben Shelton | 2020-2022 | 7 (Singles) |
| Diego Hidalgo | 2013-2016 | 76 (Doubles) |
| Johannes Ingildsen | 2016-2021 | 133 (Doubles) |
| Oliver Crawford | 2017-2020 | 229 (Singles) |
| Andres “Andy” Andrade | 2017-2022 | 251 (Singles) |
| Alfredo Perez | 2015-2019 | 293 (Singles) |
| Abdullah Shelbayh | 2021-2022 | 386 (Singles) |
| Will Grant | 2020-2023 | 698 (Singles) |
| Axel Nefve | 2022-2023 | 900 (Singles) |
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