Aimee Gibson has achieved the most significant breakthrough yet for a British padel player – securing a place in the top 100 of the FIP world rankings.
Aimee’s victory alongside fellow Brit Catherine Rose in the FIP Silver Game4Padel Open in Melbourne on Sunday (the pair’s second FIP Silver title in successive weekends) sees British no.1 Aimee leap up seven places to 98th in the world.
Achieving a place in the world’s top 100 was a publicly stated aim of the Lawn Tennis Association at the start of 2023. It has taken over two years, but Essex left-hander Aimee is the first UK player to hit a landmark double-figure position in the sport’s modern era.
The 33-year-old had an astounding run of success in 2024, winning her first tour title at the FIP Promotion event (the fifth tier of the tour) in Cairo in March. Thereafter she reached eight semi-finals, two runners-up spots and won two FIP Rise level (fourth tier) trophies, then started 2025 by winning back-to-back Silver (the new third tier of the Tour) titles in Sydney and Melbourne.
Aimee and Catherine dropped a grand total of three games in their opening three rounds in Melbourne, before cruising through the final against top-seeded Dutch pairing Bo Luttikhuis and Marcella Koek 6-3, 6-2.
“These two weeks in Australia have been amazing,” said Aimee. “Playing with Catherine, tournament by tournament we’ve just got better and better. The wins in Australia have been pretty convincing. It shows the more we play together the more we’re gelling together, and I think we’re going to play a lot more together now.
“I can’t believe I’ve achieved that in two years [reaching the top 100] and being the first British woman to do that is insane. It’s awesome as well that Catherine’s in the top 120 and her ranking is going higher and higher each week. Let’s get another Brit in the top 100.”
The Sydney and Melbourne titles also lifts Catherine to no.116 in the world – thus making her the British no.2 as she overtakes Tia Norton.
We’ll bring you more reaction from Aimee shortly…
