Illinois Men's Tennis Alum Ram Announces Retirement from Professional Tennis
September 11, 2026 | Men's Tennis
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois men's tennis alum and 2003 NCAA national champion Rajeev Ram has announced his retirement from professional tennis after competing professionally for the last two decades.
Ram won six Grand Slam doubles titles and 32 total men's doubles titles across his career, spending nine weeks as world No. 1 in the ATP doubles rankings.
A native of Carmel, Indiana, Ram competed on the Illini's 2003 national championship-winning squad under head coach Craig Tiley, who now serves as the CEO of the United States Tennis Association. The Fighting Illini went 32-0 en route to the team title, while Ram also secured the NCAA doubles championship while competing with Brian Wilson.
Ram competed professionally in both singles and doubles, though he retired from singles play in 2017 to focus on his doubles career. Before shifting his focus exclusively to doubles, Ram won two ATP Tour-level singles titles, which both came at the Hall of Fame Open in Newport, R.I.
Ram claimed ATP Masters 1000 titles at Indian Wells in 2017 and in Paris in 2018 before winning the mixed doubles title at the Australian Open in 2019 with Barbora Krejcíková. His first men's doubles title at a Grand Slam came the following year when he took home the title at the Australian Open alongside Joe Salisbury.
Taking the mixed doubles win at the 2021 Australian Open, Ram began a historic run later that season at the US Open. Securing the men's doubles title in three straight seasons from 2021-23, Ram and Salisbury became the first pair to win three consecutive US Open titles in the Open Era (since 1968).
Ram won six total ATP Masters 1000 titles, with his most recent victory coming at the Cincinnati Open in 2025.
At the Olympic level, Ram represented the United States at three Olympic Games. He made his Olympic debut at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, earning the silver medal in mixed doubles while playing with Venus Williams.
Advancing to the second round in men's doubles at the 2020 Tokyo Games, Ram took home the silver medal in men's doubles at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris while playing with Austin Krajicek.
A member of the Indiana Tennis Hall of Fame, Ram achieved world No. 1 status for the first time in his career in October 2022 while ranking as high as No. 56 in singles.
Ram wrapped up his career at the US Open – where he made a tournament-record 26 consecutive men's doubles appearances – with a run to the men's doubles semifinals with longtime doubles partner Salisbury. He was recognized following his final professional match on Sept. 10.
