🏆 From US Open Juniors to J100 Champion: Anya Arora’s Rapid Rise at Age 14

At just 14 years old, USA’s Anya Arora has established herself as one of the brightest junior prospects, recently clinching the J100 title in New Delhi. This victory comes on the heels of a successful season that included her debut at the US Open Juniors. Indian Tennis Daily caught up with the young champion to discuss her unexpected title run, her world-class training setup, and her ambitious plans for the upcoming season.

The Title Run and Coping with Conditions

Indian Tennis Daily (ITD): Hey Anya, thank you so much for talking to Indian Tennis Daily. You had a title run in New Delhi last week. Can you talk us through that?

Anya Arora (AA): I’m good, thank you. Honestly, I didn’t really have any expectations going into the tournament. I wasn’t even sure if I was going to play, and I ended up only having two days of practice beforehand. So, I was pretty happy with the outcome.

ITD: Delhi famously had bad air quality during the tournament. How did you cope up with the playing conditions over there?

AA: Yeah, it was pretty challenging. The air quality is way worse than where I’m from [in the USA], so I had to mask up a lot and just take a lot of precautions with everything I was doing. It required a lot of focus on recovery and safety.

Season Review and Training Setup

ITD: You’ve had a great last few months, including your debut at US Open Juniors. How do you review your tennis progress this season?

AA: Well, I’m surrounded by a great team, so that makes it really easy. But, I mean, so far it’s pretty good, but we know we can always do better. The focus is just to keep pushing.

ITD: Can you talk us about your coaching setup? Where do you train, and who are your main coaches and physios?

AA: I primarily train with the USTA (United States Tennis Association), and I also go to a place called Veylix. My dad is my main coach, which is a huge help. My physio is a guy named Clay.

ITD: What do you think about the playing conditions here in Pune?

AA: It’s pretty challenging here also. The courts are very different from Delhi, and the air quality is not the best here either, but we’ll make it work and adapt to the environment.

Goals for the Next Season

ITD: What are your goals for the next season?

AA: Just to keep training harder, keep improving, and playing better. I’m trying to target more ITFs (International Tennis Federation) events and hopefully get into some more Junior Grand Slams.