The ITF/Tennis Europe 16 & Under Touring Team has wrapped up another successful trip around Europe, delivering impressive results on court and enjoying invaluable experiences off it.

Over the course of several weeks, eight of Europe’s top players travelled and competed together, taking part in a series of J60 and J100 ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors tournaments. Along the way, they gained international match experience and built strong friendships.

Selected for their outstanding performances on the Tennis Europe Junior Tour, this year’s team included:

Sebastian Tejerina (Poland)
István Damján Mokán (Hungary)
Alexandr Tiutchenko (Ukraine)
Zuka Kacheishvili (Georgia)
Tea Kovacevic (Bosnia & Herzegovina)
Maria Valentina Pop (Romania)
Lydia Panagiotidou (Greece)
Andrea Georgiou Papakyriacou (Cyprus)

Under the guidance of experienced coaches Aleksander Jürgens (EST) and Olha Khaniukova (UKR), the team benefited from consistent coaching, structured routines and the shared experience of travelling and competing as a group.

The team’s first stop was at the J60 event in Holte, Denmark, where Tea Kovacevic made a strong statement by claiming the singles title. In doubles, Kovacevic and Maria Valentina Pop reached the quarter-finals, setting the tone for what would become a very successful summer for the duo. At the higher-level J100 tournament in Pazardzhik, Bulgaria, Lydia Panagiotidou advanced to the semi-finals in singles. Kovacevic and Pop continued their consistent run there with a semi-final finish in the doubles draw.

The J60 event in Timisoara, Romania, proved to be a highlight of the tour, with the girls’ team dominating the singles competition. Kovacevic captured her second singles title of the trip, defeating Panagiotidou in the final, while Pop reached the semi-finals, making it an all-Touring Team showing in the latter stages. Kovacevic added yet another trophy to her collection by winning the doubles event alongside Fangyu Chan of China, while Tejerina and Mokán reached the quarter-finals in the boys’ doubles draw.

At the closing event of the tour, the J100 Timisoara, Kovacevic reached her third singles final of the summer, falling just short of another title. She and Pop, however, ended the tour on a high note by winning the doubles event. 

Sebastian Tejerina (POL) left the Touring Team a week early and missed the last tournament so he could participate in the Polish national championships, where he won the gold in singles.

Beyond the titles and trophies, the Touring Team gave players a sense of what life on the circuit is like, by adjusting to new environments, managing routines, and learning from each other. The support of the coaching team played a key role in helping players stay focused, grow as individuals and prepare for future challenges in their tennis journeys.

With several players improving their ITF rankings and gaining confidence through consistent competition, the 2025 Touring Team reinforced the value of this long-running joint initiative between Tennis Europe and the ITF. For the young athletes involved, the tour was more than a series of tournaments - it was a meaningful step forward in their development, both as players and as people.

Spain (boys) and Belgium (girls) have been crowned this year’s 14&U Summer Cups champions. This is the seventh win for Spain and second for Belgium in this age category of the European Junior Team Championships, with Belgium’s previous win coming in 1996 thanks to a team that included future world #1s Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin.

 

Spain was too strong for Slovakia in the boys’ final in Valencia, winning the two singles matches, while unseeded Belgium caused another upset to down the British girls, recovering from from a 0-1 deficit to win the tie 2/1 in Loano.
 

Spain’s Road to Gold: 

R1 Qualifying d. Ukraine 2-1; R2 d. Portugal 3-0; Final: lost to Germany 1-2

QF Final Rounds d. Netherlands 2-0; SF d. Austria 2-1; F d. Slovakia 2-1. 

Due the extreme heat and the temperatures reaching 38ºC in Valencia, play started at 8:30 even though the thermometer was already at 27ºC early in the morning. First up was Pepe Garcia who had also been in sizzling form, undefeated in Valencia during the qualifying as well as the final rounds. He lost his first set of the final rounds to Andrej Adamovic but recovered well to dominate the third set and put Spain ahead with a 6-3 3-6 6-0 win.

Post-match, Garcia was exuberant regarding his win and steadfast in his belief in his teammate, “I’m very happy… I played at a very high level. My opponent played well in the second set but I’m so happy and (for the second match) Stefan plays so well, I think he can win!”

Stefan Shangichev put day two’s disappointing singles loss behind him to regroup and score a straight sets win over Max Lorincik, 6-3 6-1.  “I got over my loss (yesterday) by going to the hotel with my coach, we relaxed and got ready for this match. Today was incredible, the atmosphere here in Valencia … it was very hot but to all the people supporting me: thanks to everybody!”

The win secured a successful title defence for the hosts, Spain. The team survived a nail biting semi-final on Tuesday, when Shangichev and partner Jaime Alcaraz Garfia edged a champion’s tie-break to beat Moritz Freitag & Jakob Mittermayr and secure a 2/1 win over Austria. Notably, Jaime’s older brother Carlos Alcaraz, the world #2, played on a winning Spanish Copa del Sol team, back in 2017.

Belgium’s Road to Gold

R1 Qualifying Bye; R2 def France 3-0; Qualifying Final lost to Great Britain 1-2

QF Final Rounds d. Sweden 2-1; SF d. Czechia 2-1 F d. Great Britain 2-1

Going into the final day, both teams were looking to win the Europa Cup title for just a second time in their 45-year history: Belgium won in 1996 as mentioned, and Great Britain took the title in 2012, the only previous finals appearance for each team.  

In Wednesday’s final, Grace Watson – currently ranked #2 in the Race to Monte-Carlo - took just an hour and 16 minutes to post a 6-3 6-2 win over Fin Gybels. The two had faced off in the qualifying rounds where Watson was undefeated in singles and she kept this form going for a third straight sets win in the final rounds.

Ranked just outside the top ten at #13, Hannelore Daniels kept the Belgians in the final with a 6-4 6-4 win over #3 Liv Zingg. In the deciding doubles rubber Noor Ceulemans joined Daniels to play against Watson and Zingg. Locked at one set all the championship tie-break would decide it all:  in the end, the match and the title went to the Belgians with a 2-6 6-3 10-6 win, reversing their loss to Great Britain at the qualifying rounds in Lucciana less than a week ago.

Final Standings and ITF Finals Qualification

A total of 67 national teams competed at eight different qualifying venues, with Rakovnik (CZE) and Gaziantep (TUR) hosting both boys’ and girls’ qualifying. Four nations - Austria, Czechia, Germany and Türkiye - qualified for both the boys' and girls' final rounds. Both final round venues also hosted special sessions of the Tennis Europe Junior School. 

Photos from the Final Rounds can be found here (boys) and here (girls). 

The 14 & Under Summer Cups tournament also serves as European qualifying for the ITF World Junior Tennis Finals in Prostejov (CZE) in August. Hosts Czechia will be joined by the top 5 teams (in bold) at the world championship event:

 BOYS 14&U GIRLS 14&U 1  SPAIN BELGIUM 2  SLOVAKIA GREAT BRITAIN 3 GERMANY  CZECHIA 4 AUSTRIA AUSTRIA 5 FRANCE SWEDEN  6 CZECHIA ROMANIA  7 NETHERLANDS  GERMANY 8 TÜRKIYE TÜRKIYE

Hot off the heels of his Super Category win on clay in Milan, Rafael Pagonis (GRE) has won the boys’ singles title on the grass courts of Raynes Park in London. Japan’s Sakino Miyazawa was the girls’ champion at the Category 1 event. 

 

Pagonis was making his grass court debut, and the Greek player uncharacteristically struggled early on but eked out some tough wins to advance to the final. “In the beginning (of the tournament) it was very tough and it wasn't easy to adjust at all. But I enjoyed it and would love to play again on grass.”

The final was a third meeting against another player doing well this year and #2 in the Race: Austria’s Moritz Freitag. It was hard fought battle, and the first three-setter the two had ever played. Pagonis prevailed 7-5 4-6 6-3 to take a 3-0 head-to-head lead over his rival and stamp his authority on the Race to Monte Carlo. This victory brings his tally to impressive round numbers: a fifth title of 2025, and 20th TEJT title overall. 

On his win and amazing season so far, Pagonis was proud but wary, “I am happy…  but the ranking changes every week, so I am trying my best to stay in top 8 because I want to play the Junior Masters!”

The girls’ top seed had a very different path to victory, making light work of her rivals en route to a sixth TEJT title and second of the season. Miyazawa did not drop a set and got stronger as she advanced, dropping just three games to Grace Watson (GBR) in the semis before defeating British wildcard April Sackflame 6-0 6-3 in the final. The win is her second Category 1 title in Great Britain this year, having also triumphed in Bolton in January. 

All four Raynes Park finalists will receive an invitation to the Wimbledon 14&U event, a prospect which has Pagonis truly chuffed. “Of course, one of my goals this year was to get the invitation to Wimbledon. There are no ranking points, so I want to enjoy the tournament, play against the best in the world, and of course also watch the professionals and learn from them. I can't wait for this amazing experience!”

Miyazawa has a few more European dates on her calendar, while Pagonis is going from strength to strength heading into July. And with the Summer Cups just around the corner, there is no doubt the TEJT #1 will be keen to make history for Greece.

Boys’ Doubles Final: Moritz Freitag (AUT) & Francisco Sardinha (POR) d. Max Lorincik (SVK) & Rafael Pagonis (GRE) 6-2 6-1

Girls Doubles Final: Milica Sakamoto Milojevic (GBR) & Sakino Miyazawa (JPN) d. Riana Rusnackova (SVK) & Grace Watson (GBR) 7-5 6-4

 

ELSEWHERE ON THE TEJT:

Lexus Junior International | 12&U Cat1 | West Hants (GBR)

Working towards possible qualification for the Carlos Moya 12&U Festival were champions Kai Max Hodkinson (GBR) and Bianca Fagerlund (SWE). It is Hodkinson’s third final and second title of the year, while the Swede picks up her maiden win of 2025.

Torneo U16 | 16&U Cat2 | Crema (ITA)

Another Japanese player made headway on the TEJT this weekend in the form of Ayaka Iwasa. Having played several 12 and 14 & Under events, she has now won her first singles title on tour. Cesare Cattaneo (ITA) picked up his third tour title and first in this age group.

Bohemia Cafex Cup | 14&U Cat3 | Rakovnik (CZE)

Matteo Sanson (SVK), currently at number 25 in the Race, has picked up a second title in his third final appearance of 2025. Meanwhile, congratulations to Czech local Amelie Tvrzska on winning her maiden TEJT singles title! You can find full results from all of last week's events here. 

SUMMER CUPS

Coming very soon is the 14&U Summer Cups, with the Qualifying Rounds due to start next week (25-27 June) and the Final Rounds following from 30 June to 2 July. Team nominations are now online. For all the dates, ages groups, venues and more information, click here. 

Rafael Pagonis (GRE) and the Elizaveta Anikina (EST) have added another jewel to their crown of victories for 2025 with their victories in Milan.

The numbers are impressive: this is the second Super Category win for the Pagonis in 2025, fourth singles win of the year and 19th singles tournament win on tour, while the Anikina picks up her maiden Super Category win, sixth singles title of 2025 and 15th overall on the TEJT.
It was not the easiest of runs for the top boys’ seed who had to contend with several tough three set matches at the beginning of the tournament. His form improved as he progressed and the final against Laurens Drijver (NED) was his most decisive victory of the entire tournament, downing the Dutch player 6-0 6-3.

By contrast, Anikina breezed to the final, with straight sets wins and a few bagels served on the way to the final. In the decider, the tables were turned, however, as she faced the top seed Darina Matvejeva from Latvia who has her own fantastic tour record.  In a topsy-turvy final, the Estonian came out on top with a 6-1 5-7 6-1 victory in their first-ever singles clash. 

Matvejeva got some consolation by winning the doubles event 7-5 7-6 with Ofir Manhard (ISR) over Anikina & Sofia Tatu (GBR). The boys’ doubles titles went to the German pair of Luys Calin & Daniel Czarnecki who beat locals Bruno Giovanni Condorelli & Tyson Sebastian Grant 6-1 6-2in the final. 

MEMORIAL NACHO JUNCOSA

16&U Category 1 | Vic (ESP)
Now in its 23rd year and with the likes of Daria Kasatkina, Anna Blinkova and Carole Monnet as past champs, this tournament attracts plenty of top 16&U European players.

This year’s boys’ champion was Aleix Galindo Puig (ESP) who scored a 6-3 2-6 6-4 win over compatriot Nicolau Canas-Urbiola in the final. Ukraine’s Irma Chukhlich came back from a one-set deficit to break down Aliaksandra Tryhubkina 3-6 7-5 6-2 in the girls’ final. It was a second and third TEJT singles tournament wins for Galindo and Chukhlich respectively.

Boys’ doubles champions: Aleksey Petushynskyy (UKR) & Eriks Valeinis (LAT) 

Girls’ doubles champions: Ayanna Maria Mitu (ROU) & Aliaksandra Tryhubkina

ELSEWHERE ON THE TEJT
 

• PREMIUM TROPHY CAMPINA | 16&U Cat.3 | Prahova (ROU)
  Romanian Andrei Radu has won his first-ever 16&U event. Another local player, Ada Maria Panaitescu, won the girls’ singles title
• VIERUMAKI CUP | 12&U Cat.2 and 14&U Cat.3 | Vierumaki (FIN)
  12&U: Syon Harshe (USA), making his TEJT debut, took the boys’ title, while Isla Lantto was the girls’ singles champion.
  14&U: Rafael Fennis won his third TEJT singles title and Sonia Sirenius (FIN) was the girls’ winner.

ROLAND GARROS JUNIORS RESULTS: 1 MIN READ

Boys’ Singles Final

Former TEJT #2 (14&U) Niels McDonald (GER) defeated compatriot and former TEJT #4 (14&U) Max Schoenhaus 6-7(5) 6-0 6-3.

Girls’ Singles Final

Four-time winner on the TEJT, Lilli Tagger (AUT) was too strong for Brit Hannah Klugman. The Austrian took the title with a 6-2 6-0 win over the current Junior Tour #2. 

Boys’ Doubles Final:

Oskari Paldanius (FIN) & Alan Wazny (POL) def. Noah Johnston (USA) & Benjamin Willwerth (USA) 6-2 6-3

Girls’ Doubles Final:
Eva Bennemann (GER) & Sonja Zhenikhova (GER) def Alena Kovackova (CZE) & Jana Kovackova (CZE) 4-6 6-4 10-8

Mens’ and Women’s singles:

After winning the junior girls’ title back in 2018, the former TEJT #1 Coco Gauff won her first title in Paris with a win over Aryna Sabalenka in the final. Meanhwile Carlos Alacaraz saved three match points and won the longest Roland Garros final in history against world number one Jannik Sinner.

For more and full results and articles from all events go to: https://www.rolandgarros.com/en-us/

The 58th edition of Torneo Avvenire is on, this time as a 14 & Under Super Category event. 

Follow the action on our social media and the Tennis Europe app..