Ex-Touring Team member Midon claims maiden professional singles title
Argentina’s Lautaro Midon achieved a major career milestone at M15 Olavarria at the weekend – his maiden professional singles title on the ITF World Tennis Tour.
Midon was imperious on home soil and topped the podium without dropping a set – and only 29 games, while he lifted silverware after dispatching fellow countryman Matias Franco Descotte, 6-4 6-3, in the final.
Victory on the clay of Olavarria propelled the 19-year-old, who reached the final at M15 Buenos Aires the previous week, into the world’s Top 600 for the first time, with the teenager now ranked a career-best No. 583 in the ATP Rankings.
“First professional title in singles in the M15 in Olavarria – happy because the work we have been doing day by day is giving results,” wrote Midon on Instagram. “A week of pure blue and white is coming. We remain focused that effort always pays.”
View this post on Instagram
Midon is a former junior world No. 8 and was a member of the Grand Slam Player Development Programme/ITF Touring Team during 2021 and 2022, featuring at last year’s Australian Open Junior Championships as a member of the team.
For those unaware, each year groups of talented players from developing tennis nations are invited to join the Touring Team, which is financed through the Grand Slam Player Development Programme.
Those players then travel as part of a team, have access to high-performance coaches and gain exposure to events outside of their region. Without the Touring Team, these players would not be able to compete at such a high level of competition.
The list of players to have previously featured on the Touring Team before embarking on a professional career and making their mark in the game is impressive, and includes the likes of Victoria Azarenka, Ons Jabeur, Jelena Ostapenko and Grigor Dimitrov.
The Touring Team continues to deliver invaluable playing opportunities for players and at the recent US Open Junior Championships, Romania’s Mara Gae – a team member throughout 2023 – won the girls’ doubles alongside Anastasiia Gureva.
Midon’s triumph will not have gone unnoticed by those who make the Touring Team a possibility and ensure that those who travel with team are all the better for the experience.
Click here for the latest results from the ITF World Tennis Tour