'I love the big moments': impressive Sesko into Aussie Open quarters
Slovenia's Ziga Sesko will face Luis Guto Miguel – the highest-ranked player remaining in the draw – for a place in the 2026 Australian Open boys' semi-finals in what is undoubtedly a heavyweight showdown.
Sesko surged through to the last eight following a 6-4 6-2 triumph over Austria's Thilo Behrmann, while Guto Miguel beat Botswana's Ntungamili Raguin 6-4 6-3. Raguin, however, has made history here in Melbourne and should be incredibly proud of his exploits.
Looking ahead to the mouthwatering quarter-final between Sesko and Guto Miguel, the showdown will come with an added touch of spice.
“He’s also my doubles partner,” says Sesko – the duo won the boys' doubles title at J300 Traralgon, the junior warm-up event to the Australian Open.
Sesko is a member of the ITF-operated Grand Slam Player Development Programme Touring Team. In short, the Touring Team programme provides crucial support for talented players from underrepresented nations who might otherwise be unable to compete at the level they do due to financial constraints.
In meeting Sesko, an immediate observation is that he seems prepared for everything and anything. He carries the obligatory red Wilson tennis bags that hold “six rackets, four water bottles and 10 shirts”.
He had only been off 1573 Arena for five minutes but was already changed into a pristine white t-shirt. His mum Sacha and younger brother accompany him.
The 17-year-old has perfect English and shows no obvious sign of physical exhaustion. The post-match media chat is enjoyable and, frankly, a doddle.
“I love it,” he starts off in relation to the Australian Open. "The big moments, the big crowd.
“The facilities are really nice and I'm feeling good on court. It's fast conditions, fast balls, so I can develop my game on these courts.”
The weather conditions at this year's Australian Open are fluctuating to say the least but if Sesko could choose he would pick lower temperatures. A sneaky peak at the forecast for Saturday's boys' final shows a cool 20 degrees is predicted.
This is the first time in Australia for the Sesko family and, tellingly again maybe, the blinkers have been on, city attractions are for later and tennis has been the focus.
Sesko is from a “very small city” of 15,000 people in central Slovenia called Hrasnik.
“I started to play tennis there with my father in the city club,” added Sesko, who reached the quarter-finals of the 2025 Junior Championships, Wimbledon on his Junior Grand Slam debut. "The club had just four clay courts and no other junior players.
“I was just enjoying playing tennis and then I moved to a club 20 minutes away until I was 13," he said. "I then moved to Italy to Riccardo Piatti's Academy in Bordighera on the Italian Riviera for about 18 months.
“And then last year, I was travelling with my father mostly. We were going all over Europe for tournaments.”
Dad is at home in Slovenia right now, "he needs to work” says Ziga, who counts Rafa Nadal as his idol growing up.
“Maybe my game is not really similar to his, but I always loved watching him. I liked Rafa because he was always fighting till the end and had very good energy.
“Maybe in the last two years, I’ve looked up to Roger Federer a lot because I love his game. It would be good to play similar to him.”
Chat done, Ziga gets up to shower and prepare for his doubles match with his mate Luis. Before that, however, he wants to say his thank yous. It is unprompted and genuine.
“These two weeks I'm here with the Touring Team, my second time with them after Florida and Mexico last year,” he said, reserving special thanks to coaches Roberta Burzagli and Will Hann.
Sesko is most certainly making a big impression in Melbourne on and off court. ]
A full list of results from the 2026 Australian Open Junior Championships is available here.