A historic first! 15-year-old Chinese talent Sun Xinran claims her maiden Orange Bowl U18 title

On the evening of December 14th Beijing time, 15-year-old Chinese rising star Sun Xinran defeated Liutova 6-4, 6-1 in the Orange Bowl U18 girls' singles final, securing the championship and becoming the first Chinese player to win the U18 singles title at this event. Thanks to this achievement, her current junior world ranking has climbed to 14th place.

Sun Xinran claims the Orange Bowl U18 girls' singles crown

In this match, Sun Xinran was broken first in the third game but quickly broke back and then won four consecutive games to lead 5-3 with a serve to close the set. Although she did not immediately clinch the first set, she capitalized on her opponent’s service game and converted her first set point to take it 6-4. In the second set, Sun maintained her momentum, combining resilient baseline defense with proactive shot variation that tired her opponent. After winning the first five games, the match was effectively decided, and she sealed the victory 6-1.

Sun Xinran’s path to the title

Round 1: 6-1, 6-2 vs Montoya

Round 2: 6-2, 7-6(3) vs Sons

Round 3: 6-3, 6-1 vs Lani Chang [W]

Quarterfinal: 6-2, 7-6(1) vs Marinkovic [14]

Semifinal: 6-2, 6-3 vs Barros [1]

Final: 6-4, 6-1 vs Liutova [SE]

The Orange Bowl International Tennis Championships, commonly known as the Orange Bowl, is a prestigious junior tennis tournament and one of the traditional five ITF junior J500 circuit events (previously classified as Grade A). Founded in 1947 in Miami Beach, it features two age categories: under 18 and under 16, with singles and doubles competitions for boys and girls.

The U18 singles at the Orange Bowl is the most prestigious category, with past champions including some of today’s top players such as Gauff, Thiem, Tiafoe, Kenin, and Kontaveit. Previously, the best results by Chinese players in this category were runner-up finishes by Zheng Qinwen in 2018 (losing to Gauff) and Wu Yibing in 2016 (losing to Kecmanovic). At only 15 years old, Sun Xinran’s triumph, achieved without significant challenge, highlights her exceptional form and huge potential for development.

Chief tennis photographer Li Jianyi has been following and documenting Sun Xinran’s growth since she was nine. In 2020, he interviewed and photographed Sun representing the Shenzhen junior tennis team at the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area “Hong Kong Jockey Club Cup” junior tennis invitational held in Guangzhou.

Sun Xinran hails from Shenzhen and began playing tennis at age five. She is currently a third-year middle school student at Hongshan Middle School. While focusing on tennis training and competitions, she balances her studies through online classes. Her idols are Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams. She excels on hard courts but also enjoys playing on clay. Sun’s playing style is sharp and agile; although she mainly competes in the U18 junior category, often facing physically stronger opponents, she consistently shows excellent adaptability and competitiveness. During an interview with Chinese media at Wimbledon this year, she stated her short-term goals: winning lower-level adult tournaments, breaking into the top 20 of the junior world rankings, and achieving her first junior Grand Slam match victory. Looking ahead to the professional circuit, she aspires to win a Grand Slam title. Having already accomplished the first three goals, she is steadily progressing towards her bigger dreams.

This season marks Sun Xinran’s debut in junior Grand Slam events — although she did not secure wins in singles at the French Open and Wimbledon, she reached the round of 16 at the US Open, demonstrating steady improvement. Additionally, she won the girls’ doubles title partnering Shao Yushan at the J300-level China Junior Open.

Even more impressive, Sun made a stunning impact in her adult professional debut earlier this year. In late October, she won back-to-back singles titles at the W15 Sharm El Sheikh events in Egypt with a ten-match winning streak, earning her first professional championship trophies and becoming the youngest Chinese player ever to win a professional title at 15 years and 95 days old.

Looking forward, Sun Xinran has shown maturity and strength beyond her age at the start of her professional career. Her series of achievements this year give every reason to expect that she will become a key figure in China’s next generation of tennis players and potentially challenge the world’s top ranks in the future. The road in tennis is long, but Sun is confidently writing a new chapter of her own.

(Text and editing by Wang Fei; photos by Li Jianyi)