As Michael Antonius was explaining his excitement at reaching the Roland Garros boys’ final after a brilliant week in Paris, he confessed to picking up a tasty French habit.

The 16-year-old, who will bid to become the eighth American to win the boys’ singles title here, has been devouring croissants by the dozen in the French capital.

But Antonius, who defeated compatriot Keaton Hance 6-3 6-1 to set up a meeting with No. 1 seed Luis Guto Miguel in the final, said there is a good reason: why change a winning habit?

Hailing from Buffalo in New York State, he has a great strike rate when playing in France, having won J30 Le Pontet in Avignon two years ago and the famed Les Petites As event in 2024 as well.

Antonius has relocated to the USTA base in Orlando, where he is coached by Sylvain Guichard, who is French. 

“I love France. It's actually really funny but I won my first ITF tournament here and I won the Petits As here and now, in my second Junior Grand Slam, I am in a Junior Grand Slam final,” Antonius said.

“It's been good. I don't know what it is? My coach is French but I would say the main thing is the food, because I am a big croissant eater. Maybe the diet is not great, but it is making me happy. Clearly it has helped me so far.

“It depends on the day, but usually it is four or five. It is carb-loading, you know. I’m sure there is some energy in there.”

His form certainly demonstrates there is no harm stemming from his love of pastries, with Antonius building a healthy appetite for stirring wins on the clay. 

The No. 13 seed is yet to drop a set and has been far too strong for renowned rivals including reigning Australian Open boys’ champion Ziga Sesko and No. 2 seed Yannick Theodor Alexandrescou.

His good form follows a season in which he became the youngest American to win an ITF World Tennis Tour men’s event at M25 Bakersfield in March.

Antonius was also a member of the USA team that claimed Davis Cup Junior glory last year and said he has taken confidence from his progression in junior and pro ranks. 

Among the opponents he defeated in his historic run in Bakersfield was Kaylan Bigun, the most recent American to win the Roland Garros boys’ title back in 2024.

“We've spoken at USTA a lot and he's the last American to have won this event, so that gives me a lot of confidence,” he said. 

“In terms of my game, I know I always need to keep pushing myself to get better, but that match really boosted my confidence, and we played again too a few weeks later and I got him again, so those matches, those are real confidence boosts for me.”

Miguel, meanwhile, edged compatriot Leonardo Storck Franca 6-1 3-6 6-2 in a high-class showdown that was the first all-Brazilian boys' semi-final in Junior Grand Slam history.

Before the match Miguel passed on a consoling word to girls’ No. 3 seed Victoria Luiza Barros, who was beaten in her semi-final, before starting swiftly in the match on Court 6.

He is seeking to become the first Brazilian to win a Roland Garros junior singles title and the fourth to win a Junior Grand Slam singles title after successes for Tiago Fernandes at the Australian Open in 2010, Thiago Seyboth Wild at the US Open in 2018 and Joao Fonseca, who he has trained with in Brazil, in New York in 2023.

A full list of results from the 2026 Roland Garros Junior Championships can be found here