World No. 777 Marin Cilic scripts history at Hangzhou Open, becomes lowest-ranked player ever to win ATP title

US Open champion Marin Cilic scripted ATP history on Tuesday, becoming the lowest-ranked player ever to win a tour title. The Croat reigned supreme at the 2024 Hangzhou Open, beating Zhang Zhizhen 7-6(5), 7-6(5) in the final to win the 21st title of his career in singles.

Cilic started the tournament as the World No. 777, the result of a long injury break from the tour. Coming back from knee surgery just last month, he played in a couple of Challenger events before returning to the ATP Tour at Hangzhou with a wildcard.

In his opener, Cilic took down Zachary Svajda, and he followed that with a win over Yoshihito Nishioka in the second round. Then, he defeated Yasutaka Uchiyama to move into the semifinals, where he overcame fourth seed Brandon Nakashima to reach the summit clash.

Marin Cilic's last title came back in 2021 when he won the Stuttgart Open on grass. He began his 2022 season at the Tata Open Maharashtra but had to withdraw from the tournament midway as his knee troubles resurfaced.

Cilic has already risen several places and is currently ranked World No. 373 this week. With the ATP 250 title, he is set to rise even higher; the Croat is sitting at No. 212 in the live rankings.

It should be noted that because the Hangzhou Open started in the middle of last week, Cilic entered the tournament with the ranking of No. 777, allowing him the chance to make history. Before him, the record was held by former World No. 1 Lleyton Hewitt, who won the 1998 Adelaide title as the World No. 550.

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Where is Marin Cilic in action next?

Marin Cilic at the Bank of China Hong Kong Tennis Open - Day 3 - Source: Getty

Following his title win at the Hangzhou Open, Marin Cilic is set to be in action next at the ATP 500 Japan Open. In his opener, he is drawn to take on Kei Nishikori, setting up a rematch of their 2014 US Open final, where Cilic prevailed to win his maiden and only Grand Slam title so far.

Also in action at the Japan Open are the likes of Stefanos Tsitsipas, Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe, and Taylor Fritz. Fritz, the American No. 1, is the top seed at the tournament, while Hubert Hurkacz is the No. 2 seed. A win against Nishikori would pit Cilic against either Jordan Thompson or third seed Casper Ruud in the second round.