Article 13 Dec 2023
Ross McLean
13 Dec 2023
The ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors – the breeding ground for the stars of tomorrow and a major step on the ITF player pathway – has enjoyed another unparalleled year with a record 922 tournaments staged around the world as playing opportunities have increased.
A further record has been set in terms of players competing. 17,804 players (9,703 boys, 8,101 girls) have contested ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors events this year, beating the previous best of 16,102 – set in 2022 – by more than 1,700.
A total of 131 nations hosted ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors events in 2023. Angola and Congo hosted for the first time, which contributed to a record 139 tournaments being staged across Africa – in 23 nations.
At the Grand Slams, Alina Korneeva became the first girl since Belinda Bencic in 2013 to win successive Junior Grand Slam titles after triumphing at the Australian Open and Roland Garros.
Alexander Blockx became the first Belgian boy to claim victory at the Australian Open Junior Championships, while Henry Searle was the first British boy to triumph at the Junior Championships, Wimbledon since 1962.
Joao Fonseca’s victory at the US Open contributed to the 17-year-old finishing 2023 as the year-end No. 1 boy – the first Brazilian to do so since rankings were combined in 2004. Fonseca is also the first Brazilian junior in history to be named an ITF World Champion.
In May, Mexico’s Rodrigo Pacheco became the first player from the COTEEC (Central American and Caribbean Tennis Confederation) region to reach the junior world No. 1 spot since rankings were combined in 2004.
The ITF World Tennis Tour Junior Finals returned to the calendar for the first time since 2019. The event was staged at the Sichuan International Tennis Centre in Chengdu and was won by Austria’s Joel Schwaerzler (boys’ champion) and Korneeva (girls’ champion).
In addition to the four Junior Grand Slams, in 2023 there were seven J500 tournaments held for the second consecutive year. J500s provide premier playing opportunities on the ITF World Tennis Tour and, in effect, are on rung below Junior Grand Slams. The J500s were held in Cairo (EGY), Criciuma (BRA), Offenbach (GER), Milan (ITA), Osaka (JPN), Merida (Mexico) and Plantation (USA).
Cairo made history in February by becoming the first venue in North Africa to host a J500 tournament, with some of the world’s most promising juniors converging on the Egyptian capital.
There were also 36 J300s, 57 J200s, 129 J100s, 263 J60s and 423 J30s – the entry level to the Tour – in 2023. There was an increase in the number of tournaments, in all categories, compared to 2022.
Pacheco was the only player on the ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors to win multiple J500 singles titles in 2023. He conquered all before him at J500 Milan and J500 Merida.
Great Britain’s Hannah Klugman was the youngest winner of a J500 singles title in 2023, topping the podium at J500 Plantation aged 14 years, 9 months and 22 days. Klugman is the youngest player since Czechia's Brenda Fruhvirtova in 2021 to win a J500 singles title.
In terms of titles won at all levels, Malaysia’s Imran Daniel Abdul Hazli was the most successful boy to compete on the ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors in 2023, winning a combined 11 titles across singles and doubles.
Hungary’s Melinda Biro was the most successful girl on the ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors this year, winning a combined 10 titles across both singles and doubles.
With seven titles, Italy’s Antonio Vito Darderi and Flynn Thomas of Switzerland won the most singles events in boys’ tennis, while Yuliya Perapekhina also claimed seven to be the leading singles winner among the girls.
At 13 years and 8 days, Teodor Davidov of the United States was the youngest boy to win a title on the ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors in 2023. He triumphed at J30 Peja in September.
The youngest girl to top a podium in 2023 was Jiyun Oh of Korea, Rep., who conquered all before her at J30 Ho Chi Minh City in November. She was aged 13 years, 1 month and 13 days.
The longest winning streak on the ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors in 2023 was achieved by India’s Maaya Rajeshwaran Revathi, who recorded 25 match-wins across six tournaments (at ITF World Junior Tennis final qualifying, four J60 events and one J200 tournament) between March and November.
The longest winning streak by a boy was achieved by Adhithya Ganesan of the United States, who by winning J200 Nagoya, J100 Hong Kong, J200 Hong Kong and J200 Kuala Lumpur as well as three matches at J400 Merida, recorded 23 successive match-wins.
While there is so much from 2023 to celebrate, the new ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors season is only days away and 2024 promises plenty of electrifying tennis and a season during which names will be made and reputations enhanced.
