Everyone who has shown an interest in the sport of tennis must have heard of the term ATP Tours. While Grand Slams are the major tournaments that tennis stars participate in for prestige, accolades, and prize money, the remaining matches on the ATP Tour are what sustain them throughout the year.

What must be noted here is that the ATP Tours are solely for men, held by the Association of Tennis Professionals, which is the organisation that oversees the men’s category in the sport in general. The ATP Tours system was founded in the year 1990 and was briefly known as the ATP World Tour between 2009 and 2018.

To make things easy for a layperson to understand, the ATP Tour comprises every prestigious tournament played in the men’s category across the world and is the first tier of the pyramid when it comes to attracting the top talents. The ATP Challenger Tour comes next, while the ITF World Tennis Tour is third on the list.

The ATP Tour comprises the four major Grand Slams — the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open — along with a few other tournaments such as ATP 1000, ATP 500, and ATP 250 to go with the ATP Finals at the end of the year. These tournaments also determine the rankings of the players competing in it.

The Davis Cup, which is a tournament held between nations, also comes under the ambit of the ATP Tour. This is not the only tournament organised by the association in which countries compete against each other by pitting individual players. The Laver Cup, Hoopman Cup, and United Cup, among others, also fall under the jurisdiction of the ATP.

At the moment, Jannik Sinner is ranked at the top of the ATP standings owing to his performances across all tournaments. He has garnered 11,010 points by playing different tournaments and is followed closely by Carlos Alcaraz, who has 7,010 points to his name. Alexander Zverev is third with 6,705 points.

In the doubles category, Marcel Granollers of Spain holds the pole position with 8,590 points and is closely shadowed by Argentina’s Horacio Zeballos, who has the same number of points under his belt. Mate Pavic and Marcelo Arevalo are third and fourth respectively, with 7,160 points each.

It has to be understood that none of the tournaments held in the ATP Tour are played across the same surface. While some, like the US and Australian Open, are played on hard courts, others are played on grass courts and clay courts. This allows competitors to adjust to conditions across the world and adapt their skills accordingly.

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