Tennis Players Most Likely to Have Breakout Seasons in 2015

It's never too late to have a breakout season in sport. Youth is not a prerequisite for forcing through barriers, mental or physical. There is reason for a number of up-and-coming prodigies and seasoned campaigners to feel that the 2015 season will be their year in tennis.

One of the players highlighted will be 28 before the start of Roland Garros, yet 2014 provided enough promise to ensure his place on the list. 

The remaining players, however, are 21 or under and are prime examples of the excitement surrounding tennis' rising stars.

Three of the players burst on to the scene in devastating fashion in the Grand Slams this year, with Rafael Nadal, Petra Kvitova and Jelena Jankovic all on the receiving end of exuberant, burden-free tennis.

Much has been made of the big four's fragile state in the men's game, although Johnette Howard of ESPN.com rightly pointed out that "it's going to take more than one Slam title win to declare a coup at the top."

Two of the men on this list seem likely to push for such a prominent role in bringing down the top order, with some of the performances in 2014 from the women included here potentially forcing a few nervous glances over the shoulders of those in high places in the WTA rankings.

Nick Kyrgios

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Deft drop shots and audacious efforts characterized one of the most scintillating performances at Wimbledon 2014.

Nick Kyrgios, ranked at No.144 when he stepped on to Centre Court against Rafael Nadal, was both style and substance in equal measure.

The brilliance of the shot that whistled through his legs and teased the top of the net before landing far from Nadal's reach perfectly showcased everything this bright, young Australian is about.

Wins on the Challenger Tour at Savannah and Sarasota have given the 19-year-old the winning taste, with his next step being to find some consistency at the Grand Slams.

Benoit Paire and Milos Raonic saw off Kyrgios at the Australian and French Opens respectively, before the experienced Tommy Robredo beat him in four sets in the round of 32 at Flushing Meadows.

Kyrgios' tendency to make daring shots may leave him looking foolish on occasion, but his confidence and new-found experience in taking on the world's best and pushing them all the way will have him dreaming of at least one more date on Centre Court next year.

Chris Dutton wrote for The Sydney Morning Herald that Kyrgios "will almost certainly become Australia's No.1-ranked player next year." The pressure level will rise as a result, but it seems as if this fearless talent will relish such a prospect.

James Ward

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Age does not block a breakthrough. Significant progress does not necessarily mean taking on the world and ending the season with a calendar Grand Slam. The definition of success is determined by the individual, meaning James Ward, at 27 years old, is certainly capable of attaining a year to remember.

The most important factor for Ward will be whether he can make the most of such hard-earned successes, such as his qualification for Roland Garros this year. 

Tommy Robredo ended his hopes early on in Paris, with Mikhail Youzhny winning in straight sets on Ward's turf at Wimbledon.

However, victory over Sam Querrey in the Davis Cup served to highlight that there is untapped potential within Ward that will allow him to progress this year.

He has never gone past the second round in any major, so his target should be to reach that round in at least two of the Grand Slams. 

It may seem a tall order, but Ward will take some heart from a year in which he continued to close in on the top 100 in the ATP rankings.

Kevin Mitchell of The Guardian wrote that Ward was "vindicated in self-belief" when talking about the financial side of the game during the French Open. That self-belief will need to translate to the court, in the same way it did against big-hitting Querrey, if Ward is to make 2015 his year.

Aleksandra Krunic

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Not only did Aleksandra Krunic upset the partisan home supporters at the U.S. Open, but she disappointed anyone who backed one of the favourites, Petra Kvitova, financially.

There wouldn't have been many who received a pay-out from the qualifier's win over Kvitova, only a month earlier crowned Wimbledon champion, or even the American Madison Keys.

The Serbian, currently ranked at No.105 in the rankings, showed all the potential necessary to make her seem a certainty to enjoy a successful 2015.

It is worth repeating again that a breakthrough year does not require anything beyond the realms of progress. Krunic will do well to progress further than she did at Flushing Meadows in August, but even in her eventual defeat to Victoria Azarenka she took the first set 4-6.

Her slight stature was made irrelevant by a performance of the highest order against Kvitova in New York. However, it is true that she will need many more performances like that given an otherwise unspectacular 2014.

Should she navigate qualification processes next year, she can apply the confidence gained from such a spectacular U.S. Open tournament, safe in the knowledge that she can compete on the main stage.

Dominic Thiem

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Dominic Thiem is a man hurtling through the tennis stratosphere right now.

Following a year of dismantling the games of respected opponents, including Stan Wawrinka in Madrid and Ernests Gulbis at Flushing Meadows, the 21-year-old Austrian prepares to move towards 2015 with a solid year's work completed.

Despite respectable showings at Wimbledon, Roland Garros and the Australian Open, it was at the U.S. Open where Thiem excelled. Feliciano Lopez was beaten in three sets as Thiem met Tomas Berdych in the round of 16 and fell short of further enhancing an impressive campaign.

Ben Rothenberg, writing for The New York Times, described Thiem as a "mega-talented baseliner with a powerful one-handed backhand." Yet, there is realistic room for improvement as he looks to follow up his first year competing in the Grand Slams.

A good starting point would be to improve on a mixed set of results in the Masters 1000 events.

His exertions in the final major of the year imply that he should better his first-round exit at Wimbledon in June, despite the difference in surface, while starting to add smaller titles to his trophy cabinet.

Thiem lost to David Goffin on Austrian clay in Kitzbuhel in July, but should use that as motivation to add his first title in 2015.

If the last 12 months are anything to go by, Thiem's career is heading in only one direction.

Belinda Bencic

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Switzerland has had its share of success when it comes to producing formidable players.

Roger Federer, one of the oldest players on tour, is also one of the most remarkable athletes to have played the game. It is ironic, then, that one of the most remarkable players on the women's tour should be another Swiss, who, at 17 years of age, is the youngest player in the top 100.

Belinda Bencic seems to be on the right path.

Ranked at No.33, Bencic enjoyed an excellent 2014. She beat Jelena Jankovic in two sets at Flushing Meadows and also progressed to the semi-finals in Charleston in March.

As Matthew Ponsford wrote for CNN, the teenager is having to humour the type of tag that accompanies any promising player; in Bencic's case, it is the "new Martina Hingis."

It is true that Bencic is showing all the right signs of becoming an established player, but she still has plenty of time to lose the hyperbolic labels and just become Belinda Bencic.

She might have progressed further at Wimbledon had she not met Simona Halep, another player to have experienced a quick rise, in the round of 32.

However, if Bencic, who is 16 years younger than world No.1 Serena Williams, is to continue along the same path she is paving for herself so convincingly, it soon won't matter who stands in her way.