'I couldn't sleep': Sun in New York groove after past Grand Slam pain
Sun Xinran of China, P.R. has reached the latter stages of a third successive Junior Grand Slam and this time she is determined to get over the line after past experiences of falling at the final hurdle.
Sun went the distance at both the Roland Garros Junior Championships and the Junior Championships, Wimbledon only to suffer defeat with Grand Slam glory tantalisingly within reach.
Wimbledon felt particularly galling after Sun had surged into a one-set lead in the final, only to see Anna Pushkareva retaliate with considerable effect and snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
But Sun, who has achieved so much considering she only turned 16 in July, is back in the saddle at the US Open Junior Championships and very much in the New York groove.
Later today she will contest a semi-final showdown with home favourite Chukwumelije Clarke, having already dispatched two Americans – Thara Gowda and Kristina Penickova – in earlier rounds. There is a mission to this time get over the line.
“After Roland Garros, I was sad,” said Sun. “I was not sure whether I would go to another Junior Grand Slam final, but then Wimbledon came and I had another chance against a player I had beaten previously.
“I gave myself big pressure – I couldn’t sleep at night. But now, here, I am more relaxed. For me, every result is okay because it cannot be worse than it was at Wimbledon.
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“Roland Garros was much easier to deal with than Wimbledon because at Wimbledon I was so close. After Wimbledon, I sat around for like one or two weeks. But then I realised I really needed to recover from losing that final.
“Nobody wants to lose but going through that pain makes you stronger. I would have been better not to lose, but those experiences will make me stronger. Some players maybe come and win a Junior Grand Slam first time, but the experiences are important.”
As hinted at earlier, Sun has achieved much in a short space of time and these defeats in Junior Grand Slam finals are all part of the process – and she has some pretty impressive achievements tucked away in her back pocket.
The teenager has already claimed two professional titles on the World Tennis Tour – at back-to-back W15 Sharm El Sheikh events in October 2025 – and has enjoyed notable successes on the World Tennis Tour Juniors.
In May, while still only 15, Sun triumphed at the Trofeo Bonfiglio in Milan to become the sixth-youngest girl to win two J500 titles – J500s are a rung below Junior Grand Slams in terms of ranking points on offer.
This followed her victory at J500 Fort Lauderdale – the Orange Bowl, in December 2025. Incidentally, Anna Kournikova, Caroline Wozniacki and Amanda Anisimova are among the names to have achieved the feat at a younger age.
Combined with her Junior Grand Slam exploits, this has seen Sun, who has trained in Serbia with her coach Goran Zivitic for the past five years, rise to the No. 1 slot in the World Tennis girls’ rankings. For Sun, however, that does not bring additional pressure.
“For me, it does not,” she added. “But so many people have said things like, ‘you have been to a final before, now this time you should win’. But I just want to do my best. Every time I just want to play my best – I think that is enough.”
Sun is another player to have received financial assistance through the World Tennis-operated Grand Slam Player Development Programme in the form of Grand Slam Player Grants. Earlier this year, Sun received $25,000 towards her ongoing costs.
This development programme is financed by the Grand Slams, but it is World Tennis modelling that determines the players selected for grants. It aims to provide players from underrepresented nations with greater access to competitive pathways.
Whichever way you look at it, Sun is a talent and a name to keep a very close eye on in the coming years, whatever happens in New York.
A full list of results from the 2026 US Open Junior Championships can be found here