Though there is more parity within the top 10 of the Men’s and Women’s rankings than there has been in quite some time, we are always looking out for that “next big thing”. Last week’s blog post “Talented Group of Junior Players Give American Tennis Hope”, focused on the possible future stars of American tennis currently sitting in the top ten of the World Junior rankings. We can’t however, forget about the talented youngsters from around the globe that are poised to make a run at the top 10 in years to come.
So, let’s take a look at some of the top international Junior players, and weigh their chances of becoming future stars.
Alexander Zverev (Germany) #1 ITF Ranked World Junior, #804 ATP
Already standing at 6’ 4’’, this 16 year old has a massive serve his opponents often struggle with. He just won the Junior Australian Open 2014 by beating Stefan Koslov (featured in our Junior tennis blog) in straight sets 6-0 6-3. His first Junior Grand Slam title not only extends his lead as #1 ITF ranked World Junior, but gives him hope towards achieving his goal of being ranked in the top #150 in ATP in 2014. It also bodes well that Zverev has two important role models who can give him guidance along the way. Alexander Zverev Sr, his father, played on the Soviet Davis Cup Team and his older brother, Mischa Zverev, is already an established player on the pro tour, ranked #205 ATP. Growing up in a tennis family, he must have had great support which undoubtedly helped him develop as a player. He is definitely considered the future of German tennis.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blaT3l-U5x8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfOaU7UeYjo
Borna Coric (Croatia) # 4 Junior ranking, #307 ATP
Another right handed up-and-coming Junior is 17 year old Borna Coric. The Croatian was ranked #1 in the ITF junior rankings in 2013, a year in which he won the junior US Open title. His good performance won him a spot on the Davis Cup team where he faced World Top 10 player, Andy Murray of Great Britain. Even though he lost in straight sets (3-6 0-6 3-6), he showed he could keep up with Murray and even was up 3-1 in the third set . Ironically, Borna now lives in Great Britain where he train at a sport and leisure center in Middlesex that just recently started offering a junior development program. With the goal of forming future british tennis stars, around 17 male and female young tennis players are provided with a house to live, daily physical and technical training, as well as private tutors to help them with school work. His first junior Grand Slam title will also be his last, since he now focus on playing Futures and Challengers in order to establish an even better ATP ranking soon.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDCP-SPQ2Rc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2aapqTn5MU
Belinda Bencic (Switzerland) #1 Junior ranking, #143 WTA
At just 16 years of age, right-hander Belinda Bencic is the #1 ranked World Junior and #143 in the WTA World Rankings. 2013 was a very successful year for her as she won the Wimbledon junior title as well as the Junior French Open, becoming the first Swiss girl since Martina Hingis in 1994 to do so. She also defeated Alize Cornet, #25 in the Women’s World Rankings, with 7-5 6-4 in her inaugural Davis Cup match for Switzerland. Also, in this year’s Australian Open, she made it through to the main draw for the first time in her career where she lost in the second round to the eventual champion Li Na. Na even went as far as to compare her to Hingis, which is just about the highest praise a player can receive. This Swiss comparison comes as no surprise especially considering Bencic attended the academy of Hingis’ mother Melanie Molitor’s beginning at the age of four.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZvoWc4yNrM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTPT03-aCtQ
Ana Konjuh (Croatia) #5 ranked ITF Junior, #200 WTA
Ana Konjuh, the 2013 junior Australian Open and US Open winner, is 16 years old and originally from Dubrovnik, Croatia. In December 2012, she won the Orange Bowl International Championships and holds a World Ranking (WTA) of #200. At the beginning of this year, she surprisingly defeated Roberta Vinci, #14 in the women’s World Rankings, in her first round match at the ASB Classic in Auckland, 3-6 6-4 6-2. Unfortunately, she could not keep up her aggressive game in the second round though as she lost against Lauren Davis of the United States, 6-2 2-6 2-6. Similar to Belinda Bencic, she made her first main draw appearance at the Australian Open 2014, also losing to Li Na in the first round. Unfortunately, she underwent elbow surgery after the Aussie Open, which will keep her out for four months, but she is one to watch for years to come.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aE1vIcApHvM
