5 teenagers to watch out for at Wimbledon this year ft. Carlos Alcaraz & Emma Raducanu
Wimbledon has seen a bevy of teenage champions flourish on its lustrous lawns through the years. Former World No. 1s Maria Sharapova, Martina Hingis, Steffi Graf, and Boris Becker tasted glory at the grasscourt Major when they were still in their teens.
In recent times, however, the frequency of teenagers lifting the trophy at Wimbledon has gone down, with the game's established names holding a firm grip over the Slams.
But Emma Raducanu's US Open win at the age of 18 last year has once again opened the doors for teenagers to make their mark at the highest level of the sport.
While we shall miss the 2021 US Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez at Wimbledon this time due to a stress fracture in her right foot, here's a look at five other teens who could shake up the draw at the upcoming grasscourt Slam.
#1 Coco Gauff
It was on the hallowed lawns of SW19 three years ago that Coco Gauff announced her arrival on the big stage. A sensational Wimbledon debut saw the American, then aged 15 years and three months, become the youngest player to qualify for the main draw of the grasscourt Major in the Open Era.
But Gauff wasn't content with just qualifying. She went a step further and upset five-time champion Venus Williams in the opening round. The sprightly teen continued her remarkable journey to win two more matches before bowing out to eventual champion Simona Halep in the fourth round.
Made for the big stage ✨
@CocoGauff becomes the youngest player since 1991 to win in the first round of the ladies' singles, beating Venus Williams 6-4, 6-4
#Wimbledon https://t.co/hfgcQGdZtq
That Wimbledon campaign, and especially her massive win over Venus Williams, was pivotal in instilling her with the belief that she belongs in the big leagues.
Gauff has since made rapid strides on the circuit, truly establishing herself as a title contender. She now has two career titles in singles and four in doubles to her name. While her singles ranking is 12th, she is ranked No. 5 in the world in doubles.
The 18-year-old added another round-of-16 appearance at Wimbledon in 2021 before finishing as the runner-up at Roland Garros earlier this month. She also reached the women's doubles finals at the 2021 US Open and the 2022 French Open.
Gauff carried her momentum from Parisian clay to the grasscourts of Berlin, reaching the semifinals and losing to eventual champion Ons Jabeur.
The World No. 12's ability to quickly adapt to different surfaces makes her one of the biggest stars to watch out for at the third Major of the year.
#2 Carlos Alcaraz
No teenager has made a bigger statement than Carlos Alcaraz this year. The Spaniard, who celebrated his 19th birthday in May, has won four titles this year. Two of those trophies came at the ATP Masters 1000 level in Miami and Madrid, underlining his determination and hunger to compete with the best in the business.
Touted as one of the favorites for the Roland Garros title, Alcaraz's Paris sojourn was cut short by Olympic gold medalist Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinals. It was the Spaniard's second appearance in the last eight of a Major following the US Open last year.
Alcaraz hasn't played on the tour since his French Open loss. He was scheduled to take part in the Queen's tournament last week but had to pull out due to an elbow injury.
Carlos Alcaraz will miss the Queen’s Club due to an elbow injury.
Should play only one grass tournament in 2022: Wimbledon.
Alcaraz will thus head to SW19 with zero tournament play on grass. He is relatively inexperienced on the surface, having lost in the second round to Daniil Medvedev at Wimbledon last year.
While that could be a cause for concern, his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero has assured that "everything is in the right place".
Given that the World No. 7 is a fast learner and a diligent student of the game, the hiatus isn't expected to make much of a difference if he is fully fit.
#3 Emma Raducanu
Emma Raducanu burst onto the scene exactly a year ago on the verdant courts of Wimbledon. In her Grand Slam main-draw debut, she made the fourth round as a wildcard entrant. The 18-year-old's fairytale run ultimately ended in a retirement against Ajla Tomljanovic due to breathing issues.
But by then, the Toronto-born daughter of a Chinese mother and Romanian father, had etched her name in the record books as the youngest British woman to reach the last 16 of Wimbledon in the Open Era.
Raducanu's performance raised hopes of ending the long drought for a British women's singles Major winner, which she fulfilled in her very next Slam outing at the US Open.
At Flushing Meadows, she became the first qualifier (male or female) to lift a Major trophy in the Open Era in a spectacular run that saw her win 10 consecutive matches in straight sets.
The accomplishment catapulted her to superstardom, making her a global favorite among top brands.
While Raducanu soared off the court, her career graph on the court hasn't reached that high ever since. Frequent injuries played their part in curbing the 19-year-old from building a consistent run of form.
The latest injury scare came on the grasscourts of Nottingham earlier this month. She managed to play just seven games before retiring due to a side strain.
Welcome back, @EmmaRaducanu 👋
#Wimbledon https://t.co/XIiq99RmYg
Although the Brit hasn't been able to play any further tournaments on grass this summer, the fact that she has been practising at the All England Club this week is positive news. The World No. 11 is reportedly on course to be fit for her home Slam and fans will hope that her physical woes don't lead to another mid-match retirement.
#4 Holger Rune
Another teenager who has made his presence felt on tour this year is 19-year-old Holger Rune. The Dane has had a stellar career as a junior, winning the 2019 French Open boys' singles title and rising to the pinnacle of the world rankings.
While he has been making his mark on the ATP Challenger circuit so far, Rune has truly come into his own this season. At the Open 13 in February, he reached his maiden career ATP semifinal in doubles in partnership with Hugo Gaston.
In singles, he earned his career breakthrough on the claycourts of Munich in April. Rune had his first top-10 scalp in the form of then World No. 3 Alexander Zverev en route to winning his first-ever ATP title.
The Dane took that form to Roland Garros in a stunning main-draw debut. He toppled fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and 14th seed Denis Shapovalov to make the last eight of a Slam for the very first time before succumbing to eventual runner-up Casper Ruud.
#teamrune
An absolute pleasure supporting such a great person as @holgerrune2003 & coach Lars, Building the game nicely on 🌱🎾🍓 #teamrune https://t.co/48TffaY8yF
Rune then went on to lose both his openers at Halle and Eastbourne on grass, preventing him from building a rhythm on a surface where he hasn't played much on.
The teen has been criticized lately for his mercurial nature on the court, especially for his outburst against Ruud at the French Open. However, there's no doubt that the World No. 29 indeed has the passion and talent needed to scale the heights in the world of men's tennis.
#5 Qinwen Zheng
Perhaps the least popular name on this list is that of World No. 53 Qinwen Zheng. The 19-year-old Chinese has had an amazing record on the ITF circuit, where she won eight titles from eight finals.
She is now looking to bank on her big-hitting game to become a regular in the latter stages of important tournaments. The teen has been gradually making her mark with some solid wins this year.
Qinwen Zheng becomes the first player to take a set off Iga Swiatek at this #RolandGarros https://t.co/HhYFh9P8Kq
She reached the semifinals of the Melbourne Summer Set 1 in January as a qualifier. At Roland Garros, she made it to the fourth round on her debut for her best-ever performance at a Slam.
Zheng continued her surge to capture the WTA 125 title in Valencia, which propelled her to a career-high No. 46 in the rankings earlier this month.
Although she went down in both her openers on grass at Berlin and Eastbourne, Qinwen Zheng has proved with her ball-striking that she is here to stay and could have a solid run at SW19.