For the past four years a toy panda has sat on a shelf in Kamilla Bartone’s bedroom.

The panda was a gift from Jelena Jakovleva, her former coach and mother of Jelena Ostapenko, who brought it back from China after her daughter had competed at the inaugural ITF Junior Masters in Chengdu in 2015.

Ever since, it has acted as a source of motivation for Latvia’s Bartone, who always hoped that one day she might follow in the footsteps of Ostapenko and qualify for the season-ending showdown in the Far East.

Following a campaign in which she has reached the quarter-finals of two Junior Grand Slams, the 17-year-old’s time has come, and when the tournament gets underway on 23 October, she will do battle for the title of ITF World Tennis Tour Junior Finals girls’ champion.

“I remember when Ostapenko’s mum was my coach, they went to Chengdu and brought me back a panda dressed in an ITF Junior Masters t-shirt,” Bartone – a member of the Grand Slam Development Fund Touring Team during 2019, told itftennis.com.

“The panda is still in my room and has been a constant reminder of where I want to be and this year I have made my little dream come true.

“When I realised that I’d qualified for the ITF Junior Finals, I was so happy and now I’m really excited about competing there. It’s a special tournament, which offers the opportunity to win a trophy and finish the season on a high.

“To win the ITF Junior Finals is probably the best thing in Juniors.”

Bartone’s progress this year has been stark. She reached the quarter-finals of two Junior Grand Slams – Australian and US Open – in singles, while she triumphed in doubles at Flushing Meadows alongside Russia’s Oksana Selekhmeteva and made the doubles final at Wimbledon.

“I’m pretty happy with my results this season,” said Bartone, who cites 2008 Roland Garros champion Ana Ivanovic as an inspirational figure as she “combines hard, professional sport with always staying beautiful and girly”.

“Reaching the Wimbledon doubles final and then going to the Wimbledon Ball were massive standout moments for me, as was winning the US Open doubles title, of course.

“But a funny thing, and sad thing at the same time, is that in three Grand Slams this year I lost to the eventual winner [Clara Tauson, Daria Snigur and Maria Camila Osorio Serrano at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open respectively) and once to the finalist [Emma Navarro at Roland Garros].

“This has made me more motivated for next season. But, to be honest, I just got the maximum experience that I could from this year with a view to my professional career. Every day in tennis is a new lesson.”

Bartone’s Wimbledon’s experience was capped by having the opportunity to meet the Duchess of Cambridge, together with fellow junior players Selekhmeteva, Polina Kudermetova and Giulia Morlet.

“Not every person can meet the Duchess of Cambridge and talk to her,” added Bartone. “Standing next to her, I didn’t feel that she was royalty or someone special. She was just a normal person having a normal conversation. She was very friendly.”

Only time will tell whether meetings with the Royal Family at Wimbledon, on Centre Court or otherwise, become commonplace, but for now Bartone is intent on ensuring the trajectory of her career moves in an upward direction.

“Winning certainly, but just competing at the ITF Junior Finals is a step closer to a professional career,” she said. “The ultimate goal, as with any player, is to be the best on the professional circuit.”