Following Chung Hyeon’s upset at the Australian Open three months ago, he has continued to impress in his ascent in world rankings. In his most recent singles performance at the Miami Open last month, he smashed his way into the quarter-finals yet again and is at the time of writing placed at rank 19 according to the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP).

In the quarter-finals, Chung Hyeon was eliminated by John Isner, ranked ninth. When the draws are made, they are based on seeds derived from a formula based on the player’s individual performance over time. Chung Hyeon remarked on Twitter that, before the games even started, his draw had already put him higher than how he ended in the Miami Open last year, citing his enormous improvement in both rank and skill over the past year.

“What he’s doing is really impressive,” said David Suh (10), varsity tennis player. “I thought he would have a rank around 40, but he actually climbed all the way up to 19 when most of us were not even looking since the Australian Open.”

After his performance at the Australian Open, Chung Hyeon instantly catapulted through the top 30s, but to take him across the top 20s took grueling, consistent hard work and practice. In every tournament since the Australian Open, he has gotten through to the quarter-finals. Now, at rank 19, he is setting the record for the highest rank in tennis any Korean player has ever achieved.

Previous to the Miami Open, Chung Hyeon participated in the Indian Wells Open in the USA. There, he faced up against Roger Federer for the first time after the Australian Open in the quarter-finals and lost, but he gracefully accepted his defeat, tweeting “Always [an] honor to share the court with you @rogerfederer.”

“The most amazing part of Chung Hyeon is not even just his performance, but how much he improves,” said Ryan Hyun (10), varsity tennis player. “He played even when his foot was blistering and still managed to persevere for most of the match. I do not think anyone could just do that.”