The messages have sat there for days, just buzzing away.

They have piled up, certainly in the hundreds or maybe thousands by now, as friends, family and pretty much everyone in her life has pinged Lea Nilsson’s phone. After all, they have been watching a most extraordinary story play out at the US Open Junior Championships.

“I haven’t looked at my phone since the third round,” said Nilsson, a recipient of funding through the ITF-operated Grand Slam Player Development Programme. "I’ve only used it for booking practice courts. So mentally, I’m still fresh.”

Sorry to all who are wondering why Nilsson has not replied lately; she’s too busy making history.

The 17-year-old from Stockholm, Sweden is one win away from doing something no girl has done in the 51-year history of the US Open Junior Championships: win the championship after coming through qualifying.

Turning her match against Mika Stojsavljevic completely around, Nilsson dominated the 2024 champion and prevailed 0-6 6-1 6-1 victory to reach her maiden Grand Slam final. Her previous best result was reaching the third round, on her Grand Slam debut, at the 2024 Australian Open. 

No qualifier has ever won the title here; the last girl to make the final from qualifying was American Alexandra Yepifanova, who lost to Camila Osario in the 2019 final. 

In typical Nilsson fashion, she had almost no reaction on-court after winning; just a tiny fist-pump toward her coach, Milos Sekulic.

“I was really happy, even though the match was a little weird,” Nilsson said. “I knew it wasn’t over until it was over.”

Nilsson will now face the hottest player at the US Open in the final, Belgian No. 14 seed Jeline Vandromme. The 16-year-old won her 22nd consecutive singles match in dispatching No. 2 seed Hannah Klugman of Great Britain, 6-3 6-2.

“I’m really happy with the way I managed everything today, my nerves and her playing style,” Vandromme said.

Nilsson’s run to the final has been as dominating as it has been unexpected; she has lost only two sets in five main draw matches.

That’s why the start to Friday’s semi-final on Court No. 10 was so shocking. Stojsavljevic came out firing, blasting six winners and capturing every first serve point. Nilsson made 11 unforced errors in the opening set.

“She did a very good first set, so starting the second set I just tried to play a little easier, try to make her do the mistakes and not me,” Nilsson said. “I just tried to not give it away.”

The second and third sets were the total opposite of the first, as now it was the 16-year-old defending champion who was spraying errors, while Nilsson steadied, making only seven unforced errors over the final two sets.

And now she is in a Junior Grand Slam final and bidding to become the first Swedish girl to win a Junior Grand Slam singles title since Lena Sandin in 1979. 

Vandromme, meanwhile, had little trouble with Klugman, who is more experienced in big matches. The Brit got off to a quick 2-0 start before the Belgian, with Kim Clijsters looking on, rattled off five straight games.

Vandromme’s winning streak has certainly helped her learn to relax in big moments, and she recalled a battle early in the streak when she almost lost.

“I had three match points against me in Roehampton (at a W35 event in August),” Vandromme said. “Since that match I’ve just had a mindset that anything can happen. I never think it's over and just fight for every point, every ball, every shot, and that mindset has helped me every match.”

Clijsters, who first met Vandromme when the latter was a very small child, fetching balls for her siblings who took lessons at Clijsters’ academy in Belgium, said Vandromme’s mindset has been impressive.

“I’ve known her for a long time and I know how well she can hit the ball,” Clijsters said. “It’s just a matter of learning how to deal with the moment, and it’s really nice to see how she’s put it all together here.”

An intriguing final awaits and silverware awaits for the victor.

Elsewhere at the US Open Junior Championships, Vandromme will also be contesting the girls' doubles final. She and partner Laima Vladson of Lithuania won a 10-6 super tiebreak in the third set over Kamonwan Yodpetch and Rulen Zhang to advance to the final.

They will face the Kovackova sisters, Alena and Jana, who continued their outstanding season with a 6-2 6-3 victory over Eva Bennemann and Sonja Zhenikova. That avenged a defeat in the Roland Garros final.

The Kovackova sisters also reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open and at Wimbledon, but are looking for their first Junior Grand Slam title as a team.

A full list of results from the 2025 US Open Junior Championships is available here