Carlos Alcaraz sparked controversy after announcing that he will not participate in the tennis “Pride Night,” declaring: “This sport should focus solely on the results on the court, not on political issues or social movements.”
Marketa Vondrousova revealed on her Instagram she is being hounded by excessive invasive drug testing. Meanwhile two-time drug cheat Jannik Sinner hasn’t endured one single reported test since returning from a three month ban.
Anastasia Potapova announced that Austria accepted her citizenship and she will be representing Austria in her tennis career.
Gilles Cervera is coaching young American Nishesh Basvareddy. His previous coaching collaboration was with Daniil Medvedev.
Even Rafa Nadal is bored by tennis now: “I think Sinner and Alcaraz need someone to push them… Fonseca? I think he’s still young and not in a position to think about that. They need someone to push them a bit because they’ve set themselves apart from everyone else and in any form they can beat anyone, until they come up against that other player. Those of us watching from the outside have the feeling that even if they play badly, they’re going to keep winning and reaching all the finals.”
The IMG Junior Championships are heating up in Bradenton, FL. 3 seed Luna Cinelli (ARG) and her rare one handed backhand were upset by UK’s 16 year old Hollie Smart 63 75. Boys 3 seed Ryo Tabata was beaten by South Africa’s Connor Doig. No. 9 seed Michael Antonius of Buffalo, NU suffered his first loss ever at the tournament, after winning the Eddie Herr 12s title in 2022 and the 14s title in 2023 (he skipped last year). Yesterday he lost a three-hour and 35-minute marathon vs. Pedro Henrique Chabalgoity of Brazil 62 67(8) 6-3. The biggest upset was on Monday when American wildcard 16 year old Jerrid Gaines Jr. knocked off the 2 seed Oskari Paldanius of Finland 76 61. Gaines is ranked ITF 273 to Paldanius at no. 11.
Over a thousands junior players from over 90 nations entered the prestigious tournament which features competitions on clay and hard courts in the 12s, 14s, 16s and 18s divisions. Yesterday Jimmy Arias hosted a QA session with former Grand Slam finalist and current Dunlop ambassador Kevin Anderson.
Two recognizable names Lani Chang and Emanuel Ivanisevic are competing at the IMG Championships.
Carlos Alcaraz · IMG Junior Championships · Jerrid Gaines · Jimmy Arias