He has been ranked as high as world No. Hurkacz also has a career-high ranking of world No. As a junior, Hurkacz was ranked as high as No. As a professional, he broke into the top for the first time in after reaching the second rounds of the French Open and US Open. In doing so, he entered the top 30 of the world rankings. In , after winning his second and third singles titles, he went on to reach his first Grand Slam semifinal at the Wimbledon Championships and became the second Polish man to make a semifinals appearance at a Grand Slam after Jerzy Janowicz in Hurkacz is an all-court player.
In addition to being a defensive baseliner, he has often included netplay into his style and has been recognized for his penchant for playing serve-and-volley to close points. His younger sister, Nika, is ten years younger and also plays tennis. His mother was a junior tennis champion in Poland, and one of his uncles, Tomasz Maliszewski , played tennis professionally.
His grandfather was also a volleyball player at an international level. When asked whether his family's history shaped him to become the athlete he became, Hurkacz replied, "The [sporting] genes, the motivation in the family, the love for the sport. I think they have helped me a lot. Hurkacz began playing tennis at the age of five after his mother introduced him to the sport as she practiced.
His mother and father were his first teachers but he later enrolled in classes and started playing more consistently. He later became interested in professional tennis after watching Roger Federer on television. He has stated that if tennis was not his future, he would have pursued either basketball or motor racing , or he would continue his education. Hurkacz played in the main draw at the French Open and defeated Tennys Sandgren in the first round. There, he faced Stefano Travaglia who, like many others, fell victim to the extreme heat and retired.
Hurkacz started his season at the Maharashtra Open in Pune , India. He continued at the Canberra Challenger , where he won the title after defeating Ilya Ivashka in the final. Hurkacz followed that up by making his debut at the Australian Open. At the Dubai Championships , he defeated Corentin Moutet in the first round and then went on to win against No.
