Party like it's 1999: Efremova seals Australian Open girls' title
France’s Ksenia Efremova had suggested her Russian opponent, Ekaterina Tupitsyna, was a far better player than her ITF World Tennis Tour girls' ranking of No. 92 suggests and she was proven right during an enthralling Australian Open girls' final.
The 16-year-old Efremova, who is surely destined to become a huge crowd favourite thanks to her engaging and upbeat demeanour, held her nerve despite a 3-0 deficit in the second set to claim the first Junior Grand Slam singles title of her career. The final score was 6-3 7-5.
It was well deserved with Efremova becoming the first French girl to win a Junior Grand Slam singles title since Elsa Jacquemot conquered all before her at Roland Garros in 2020.
Efremova fell to the floor in celebration. She is, after all, only the second player to be crowned Australian Open girls' singles champion and first this century. Virginie Razzano was the only previous girls' champion here from France – in 1999.
Earlier in the piece, Efremova stormed into a 4-0 first-set against Tupitsyna on Rod Laver Arena in what appeared like a procession to the title.
Tupitsyna, however, gradually clawed her way back in with her greater weight of shot, but was ultimately unable to prevent Efremova taking the opening set in 38 minutes.
The contest changed at 3-0 to Tupitsyna in the second set. With the momentum fully in her favour, she disappeared off court for several minutes before returning with her left thigh tightly strapped.
Efremova saw her chance and took it, maneuvering herself into more rallies and playing with increased aggression.
“I looked at my coach, and I said, ‘we have to come back," added Efremova. "I was like, ‘you've got to move otherwise you can lose a match like this'. I wouldn't say I lost focus, but I would say I lost a little aggression.
“At that stage, she has nothing to lose. She just lost the first set, so she went for it fully with no regrets. That's where I said, ‘okay, we need to keep going and to put the balls in and to fight for every ball even if it's tough'.”
Efremova's post-match press conference in the vast interview theatre here is as good an indicator of her character as it gets.
She is just 16 but dictated the rhythm and feel of the room. Fluent in English and French, serious and comedic enquiries were answered in full and with wit.
Within minutes of winning she had been on the phone to her mother in the south of France to share the joy. Her mother may well have been asleep, but that did not really matter to Efremova.
"It’s a tradition when I'm winning a tournament, every time I call her," said Efremova, who already has four ITF World Tennis Tour Women's titles to her name.
"Sometimes she doesn't sleep because she’s very stressed. I wanted to wake her up with the good news."
Efremova had not played on Rod Laver Arena before but, intriguingly, its scale and nature was not an issue given she had hit regularly on the vast centre court at Roland Garros
“In the past six months, I have been practising with the French Tennis Federation in Paris on Court Phillipe Chatrier, which is also huge. I got used to that,” she said. "I was ready for the huge stadium.”
At the on-court presentation, she was handed the trophy by Australian veteran Nicole Pratt, who reached a career-high No. 35 in the WTA Rankings.
During her presentation, Efremova commented on how tough she believes she is to work with.
“Because I have a very strong character, sometimes I can be annoying, I know that," she said. "I think there are also some players who are like this. Sometimes I'm too stubborn.
“Sometimes he can tell me something and I’m listening to him, but not in the best way of listening with open eyes."
Efremova said this with a maturity and smile of self-deprecation way beyond her years. Safe to say, if her development and overall tennis level can match the heights of her personality, then she will be some player indeed.
A full list of results from the 2026 Australian Open Junior Championships is available here.