Karen Khachanov has become the first Russian boy to win the European 18 & Under Championships title since Andrei Cherkasov in 1987.
Seeded sixth, Khachanov breezed through the early rounds before coming back from the brink of defeat during a memorable quarterfinal with second-seeded French player Johan Sebastein Tatlot, eventually winning 3-6 7-5 6-3. In the semi-finals he ended the run of Spanish giant-killer Adam Sanjurjo Hermida in straights sets to set up a championship decider with France’s other hope, Quentin Halys, who had beaten Kamil Majchrzak (POL) 6-4 6-3 in his semi.
16-year old Halys was appearing in his first ITF Junior Circuit final of 2013 but showed no sign of nerves early on as he took the first set 6-3. Khachanov held his nerve though, and just as in their first meeting earlier this season, fought back strongly to claim the remaining sets 6-3 6-4 and a second medal of the Championships.
Khachanov also reached the boys’ doubles final alongside compatriot Daniil Medvedev. The pair stretched top seeds Filippo Baldi and Lucas Miedler to a champion’s tie break, eventually won by the Italian/Austrian pair 6-3 4-6 [10-5].
The win marked a second consecutive European Junior Championship title for Miedler, who claimed the 16 & Under singles title last year. For Baldi it was the third medal of his European Junior Championships career, having claimed silver medals in singles and doubles at the 14 & Under event in 2010.
Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic dominated the girls’ events, ending the hopes of home player Karin Kennel with a straight sets defeat in the final of the singles.
Local fans had been hoping to see a home player triumph for the first time since Martina Hingis’ win in 1994, but Krejcikova single-handedly ended any such dreams. In the semi-finals, she interrupted the 35-match ITF Junior Circuit unbeaten streak of world #1 Belinda Bencic with a 6-1 7-6(4) victory over the recent junior Roland Garros and Wimbledon champion.
Seeded seventh, Kennel had staged an impressive comeback in her semi-final, recovering the loss of a 7-5 first set to concede just one more game against Elise Mertens (BEL), conqueror of second seed Ana Konjuh (CRO). There was to be no such revival in the final though; the Czech player was always in control, easing to a 6-2 6-4 win in just over an hour of play to claim her third ITF Juniors title of the season.
It was a perfect week for the 17-year old, who had earlier claimed the girls’ doubles title with Katerina Siniakova to become the fourth Czech pair to win the 18 & Under girls’ doubles since 2006. The top seeds beat Romania’s Ioana Ducu & Ioana Loredana Rosca 6-4 6-1 and Siniakova earned the rare distinction of having won European Junior Championship titles in successive years, having claimed the 16 & under doubles crown last year in Moscow.
Many of the players will now move on to team events, with the European Summer Cups due to begin next week.