By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Sunday December 29, 2024
Still well shy of her 18th birthday, Mirra Andreeva is one of the top young teenagers in tennis.
Photo Source: Lasi Open
As the 2025 tennis season kicks off at Brisbane, Hong Kong, Auckland and United Cup, we are here to take a look at some of the young stars that stand to make an impact in the months to come.
Today we’ll look at a group of top players who have yet to turn 21 – some of them are easy to recognize, while others still have a relatively empty bandwagon.
Arthur Fils | Age: 20 | Rank: 20
Fils is the highest-ranked ATP player that has yet to turn 21, and he’s already made quite a name for himself on tour. The Frenchman turned in a stellar 2024 season that featured two 500-level titles and a trip to the second week at Wimbledon. If he continues his progress in 2025 he could end up inside the Top 10.
Coached by Sergi Bruguera and Sebastien Grosjean, Fils won 82 percent of his service games and 20 percent of his return games as he compiled 38 wins in 2024. Just the tip of the iceberg...
Coco Gauff | Age: 20 | Rank: 3
She’s a woman that needs no introduction. The 2023 US Open champion commences the 2025 season at No.3 in the world. She made well over $30 million in earnings in 2024, and won 16 of 19 matches down the stretch to prove that she is still one of the premier forces in the women’s game.
Now, can she get back to her Grand Slam winning ways?
Joao Fonseca | Age: 18 | Rank: 145
Fonseca, a talented and energetic Rio native with a wow ground game, caught the attention of the tennis world earlier this month when he stormed his way to the Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan. Fonseca pushed from outside of the Top 700 at the beginning of 2024 all the way to his resting spot at 145. He’s an aggressive baseliner that takes matters into his own hands on court.
There’s plenty of ranking upside for Fonseca, who has yet to contest a Grand Slam main draw.
Mirra Andreeva
She’s still only 17, and already ranked 16. That says a lot about the long-term potential of rising Russian Mirra Andreeva. She reached her maiden major semifinal at Roland-Garros last spring, and has already compiled an impressive 15-7 record at the majors thus far.
Andreeva has proven to be tough against top talent as well, winning nine and losing just six against Top 20 opposition in 2024.
Jakub Mensik | Age: 19 | Rank: 48
Big, booming serve and a rapidly improving game. Czechia’s Jakub Mensik made waves in 2024, earning five Top 20 wins (four against the Top 10) and reaching his maiden final at Doha. He also reached a Masters quarterfinal in Shanghai and took Novak Djokovic to three tight sets once there.
Mensik dealt with injuries in 2024 (primarily elbow) and had to make time to finish up his schooling. With that in the rearview we could see another big push from the 6’4” talent in ‘25.
Diana Shnaider | Age: 20 | Ranking: 13
The former North Carolina State standout hit the WTA Tour in a big way in 2024, rocketing from barely inside the Top 100 to a year-end perch at No.14. Along the way the Russian tallied a trio of titles – one on each surface – and five Top 20 wins.
Shang Juncheng | Age: 19 | Ranking: 50
Shang – aka Jerry – made his Top 50 debut in 2024 and also lifted his maiden ATP Tour title at Chengdu, where Shang prevailed 7-6(4), 6-1 over Lorenzo Musetti to become the first Chinese player to win an ATP Tour title on home soil. He entered the season with four ATP wins to his name and claimed 25 across the duration of the 2024 campaign.
Linda Noskova | Age: 20 | Ranking: 26
Noskova kicked off her 2024 season with a statement of intent as she took out top-seeded Iga Swiatek in the third round at the Australian Open en route to a career-best quarterfinal performance. Noskova scored a trio of Top 10 wins in 2024 and won her maiden title in Monterrey, defeating Lulu Sun in the final.
A cool competitor with a fiery ground game, Noskova could be the next in a long line of Top Czech WTA stars.
Also on our radar: Martin Landaluce, Alina Korneeva, Darwin Blanch, Maya Joint
Former junior No.1 Landaluce jumped from 446 at the start of 2024 to his current ranking of 151. The 18-year-old (19 on January 8) won the Olbia Challenger title, defeating Italy’s Mattia Bellucci in the final, in October.
Korneeva, a two-time major junior champion and former junior No.1, is still trying to find her form on tour, - she will turn 18 in June.
Tien is a crafty southpaw with a high tennis IQ. The 19-year-old climbed from 472 to 122 in the rankings and recently reached the final round of the Next Gen ATP Finals.
Joint, age 18, has elected to turn pro this season after committing earlier to the University of Texas. The Australian, who was born in Grosse Pt. Michigan, reached the second round at the US Open and is up to 116 in the rankings after winning a total of 61 matches across all levels in 2024.