Ex-Stanford star Klahn reaches top 100 in world

Bradley Klahn rose to No. 97 in the world on Monday.
2012 photo by Paul Bauman

   Less than a year and a half after turning pro out of Stanford, Bradley Klahn cracked the top 100 in the world on Monday.
   The 23-year-old San Diego-area resident, who has a wicked left-handed serve and forehand, completed an impressive four-week Challenger swing through Australia and Asia last week to rise to No. 97.
   He reached the quarterfinals in Melbourne and final in Traralgon, Australia, won the title in Yeongwol, South Korea, and gained the semifinals in Yokohoma, Japan.
   Klahn, generously listed at 6 feet (1.83 meters) and 165 pounds (75 kilograms), also had an outstanding summer. He reached the final of the Winnetka and Binghamton Challengers, won the first Challenger singles title of his career in Aptos (a one-hour drive south of Stanford) and advanced to the second round of the U.S. Open for the second consecutive year.
   By moving into the top 100, Klahn will earn a berth in the main draw of the Australian Open for the first time in January. He has no computer points to defend between now and then, so he can't drop in the rankings before the first Grand Slam tournament of 2014 begins on Jan. 13 (Jan. 12 in the United States).
   Klahn lost in the second round of qualifying in his Australian Open debut this year.
   One notch ahead of Klahn in the world rankings is another diminutive American left-hander, 24-year-old Donald Young of Atlanta. In their only career meeting, Klahn prevailed 6-4, 6-4 in the second round at Aptos in August. 
   At Stanford, Klahn won the 2010 NCAA singles title as a sophomore, underwent surgery for a herniated disc as a junior and graduated in economics last year.