Getty The sun sets over the practice courts outside of Arthur Ashe Stadium.
While the round of 16 rolls on in the prestigious US Open on the main courts, action on the junior circuit heats up on the outer courts. Featuring some of tennis’ brightest young stars looking to make a name for themselves on the ITF Juniors tour, the outer courts now get to focus on showcasing the future of professional tennis.
The juniors matches will be live-streamed throughout the tournament on ESPN+. You can sign up here and watch the tournament. A subscription costs $4.99 per month.
While the tournament is still filled with future stars on the professional tour, a number of high profile upsets have already occurred with the top two boys players being knocked out in the first two rounds. Wimbledon Juniors champion and top-ranked Shintaro Mochizuki was eliminated by Alejo Lorenzo Lingua Lavallen while Roland Garros winner Holger Vitus Nodskov Rune – the second-ranked player in the tournament – was bounced in the second round as well.
The departure of the two heavyweights leaves the door open for a number of other talented players on the boy’s side to slide in and establish themselves as one of the top junior players in the world.
The exciting outer court action takes place on ESPN+, so make sure to tune in and take a look at some of Tennis’ bright future.
US Open Juniors Rising Stars: Jonas Forejtek
Forejtek has begun his assault on the professional level but looks to put a strong finish on his incredibly strong Juniors career. Coming off a strong clay court season including a win at Milan, Forejtek is looking to parlay his success into the US Open where he looks to build on last year’s disappointing showing where he bowed out in the second round.
After a slew of upsets on the boy’s side, Forejtek finds himself as the highest-ranked player left in the tournament and the path to a US Open Juniors title seemingly runs through the Czech prospect.
US Open Juniors Rising Stars: Alexa Noel
It’s been a high-quality start to the #JuniorFedCup Final – 🇺🇸 Alexa Noel gets the better of this cracking point!
Alexa Noel comes in as the third-ranked Junior player in the US Open draw and is the top remaining player left entering the third round. Noel has dabbled in making her professional debut this year, yet has had a strong Juniors season picking up a win at Milan along with a number of runner-up finishes in Grade A and Grade 1 events.
She was a top seed on the Juniors side last year but unfortunately was upset in the second round. With likely her last chance to make a deep run at the US Open Juniors title before turning pro, Noel seems to be in prime position to make a deep run into the later stages of the tournament.
U.S. Open juniors matches are airing live on ESPN+. Sign up here to watch all the action.
US Open Juniors Rising Stars: Alejo Lorenzo Lingua Lavallen
Japan’s Shintaro Mochizuki, who was defeated at the US Open
Lavallen pulled off arguably the biggest upset of the tournament so far with his impressive dethroning of top-ranked Shintaro Mochizuki. Mochizuki was coming off a string of dominant finishes and was widely expected to make another deep run at the Juniors US Open. Instead, Lavallen takes his place and finds himself another win away from an appearance in the quarterfinals.
The win sets up Lavallen to put together his best finish as a Junior. While not necessarily a player that should take the professional world by storm, the 40th ranked Juniors player entering the tournament looks to be in a relatively strong position to make a deep cinderella run.
US Open Juniors Rising Stars: Liam Draxl
Thanks to a wide-open field, 10th ranked boy’s junior Liam Draxl finds himself in prime position to finally pick up a slam win on the Junior circuit before taking the step up to the professional ranks. Draxl has gone deep into slams on the doubles side, yet has a personal best showing of the quarterfinals at the Australian Open as a singles player.
With another win, Draxl ties his deepest run at a slam and sits in a position to not face another top 25 ranked player until the semifinals. Draxl will be taking his talents to Kentucky to play tennis next year and with a juniors win at the US Open, would cement his position as one of the most coveted freshman in the nation.
US Open Juniors Rising Stars: Maria Camila Osorio Serrano
Serrano has put together a number of strong finishes as a juniors player with a win at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games under her belt as well as a runner-up showing at the 2018 Junior Masters. She looks to be in a good position to advance to her best finish as a singles player in a junior grand slam, though she will face a tough, ranked opponent in each of her next two matches to reach the semifinals.
Serrano has started testing the waters in professional tournaments and looks to be trying to put a cap on what will go down as an extremely successful juniors career with one final win in a slam that has eluded her so far.
U.S. Open juniors matches are airing live on ESPN+. Sign up here to watch all the action.
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US Open Juniors 2019: 5 Must-Watch Rising Stars