The five lowest ranked Masters 1000 semifinalists ever after Valentin Vacherot makes history in Shanghai

Follow us on Google Discover

Valentin Vacherot has made history at the Shanghai Masters this year after reaching the semifinals.

Vacherot was the world number 204 before this year’s event, where he had to come through the qualifying draw.

Since then, the 26-year-old has stunned his opponents, with Vacherot already beating Tomas Machac, Tallon Griekspoor and Alexander Bublik to reach the semifinals.

Now after beating 10th seed Holger Rune, Vacherot has become part of the history books at Masters 1000 tournaments.

Where does Valentin Vacherot rank in the top five lowest ranked Masters 1000 semifinalists ever?

After coming from a set down to beat Rune, 2-6 7-6(4) 6-4, Vacherot has become the second lowest ranked player to reach a Masters 1000 semifinal in history.

The player who tops that list is Chris Woodruff, the American who reached the last-four at Indian Wells in 1999 when he was the world number 550.

Completing the list of the top five lowest-ranked Masters 1000 semifinalists includes Andrei Pavel, Borna Coric and Henri Leconte.

Although Pavel was able to reach the final, there is only one player in this list who went all the way to win the title.

That came just three years ago, when Coric won the Cincinnati Open after beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final.

Coric is the lowest-ranked Masters 1000 champion in history, but Vacherot will be looking to change that in Shanghai.

Valentin Vacherot confirmed to make history for his country

Not only has Vacherot become the second lowest-ranked player in history to reach a Masters 1000 semifinal, but he has also made history for his country.

Vacherot is from the independent microstate of Monaco, and had a career-high ranking of world number 110 coming into the Shanghai Masters this year.

However, after dealing with some physical issues, Vacherot fell outside the top 200 and has been trying to build his way back up the ranks.

The previous highest ranked Monegasque was Jean-René Lisnard at world number 109, but Vacherot has now confirmed that he will surpass that and make his top 100 debut on Monday, regardless of what happens.

Vacherot will also benefit hugely financially, as he has now gained $345,955 in prize money from his run from qualifying in Shanghai.

Prior to this tournament, Vacherot had earned $594,077 in career prize money, which he is now set to increase by over 58%.

Vacherot will look to continue rising up the ranks and earning prize money when he plays his semifinal match in Shanghai against either Novak Djokovic or Zizou Bergs.