While he may not be among Japan’s squad of players for the Tokyo Paralympics, 15-year-old Tokito Oda already has his sights set on a gold medal at Paris 2024 after accumulating one of the most impressive records seen on the 2021 UNIQLO Wheelchair Tennis Tour to date.

“I'm only thinking about winning the Paris Paralympics. In 2024, I will be 18 years old, which seems to be still young in the eyes of the world, but I want to establish my own tennis style and create a unique style of play before I reach that age,” says Oda, who became the youngest ever junior boys’ world No.1 in April, when he was still only 14.

Oda's piece of wheelchair tennis history came during an outstanding winning sequence that saw him claim three junior and three senior singles titles at successive tournaments in Turkey. He built a winning streak of 22 successive matches in Turkey in the second half of April, winning 21 of them in straight sets.

On the face of it, wheelchair tennis may have seen more notable winning streaks. However, it was a period that enabled Oda to continue his education in the sport – an education that began at the age of nine, when he chose wheelchair tennis from a selection of para sports recommended to him by his doctor while he was in hospital being treated for osteosarcoma, the most common type of primary bone cancer in children and young people.

What is maybe more notable is that it was a period that led to bigger things just three weeks later, when Oda beat his first Top 10 ranked senior opponents, Takashi Sanada and Tom Egberink, on his way to winning his first ITF 2 title, the Kemal Sahin Open, again in Turkey.

“I was confident that I could win, but I was also more anxious before the match (the final against Egberink) than I have been in other matches,” says Oda, who made his UNIQLO Wheelchair Tennis Tour debut as a 12-year-old in August 2018.

“But once I started the match, I was able to keep my pace and finally to win. After the match, I was so happy. I could not believe that I won. Both Tom and Sanada have been at the top of the game since I started playing tennis, and I had a strong admiration for them and used them as a reference for my game. That's why I was so happy to win.”

A few days later a second successive quarter-final win over Sanada put Oda a match away from back-to-back ITF 2 singles titles, but this time Egberink proved more than equal to the challenge of the teenager from Ichinomiya, a city that is an hour’s flight from Tokyo. The Dutchman turned a 6-3 7-6 loss to Oda into a 6-4 6-2 win.

“I was very disappointed that I lost to Tom, as well as disappointed that my winning streak came to an end,” adds Oda. “I thought I went into the match with my full strength as usual, but Tom put more energy into the court than before, so I couldn't play my tennis as I wanted to, and I think that was the reason for my loss.

"I was shocked that I couldn't play my tennis as well as I wanted to. It was my last game in Turkey, and I was physically and mentally exhausted. From now on, I would like to develop the mental strength to fight until the end.”

Having started 2021 ranked at No. 90, Oda’s impressive set of results in Turkey saw him end May at No. 26 in the men’s singles rankings. His ranking has improved one place this month, meaning that he ends June inside the world’s Top 25 and as Japan’s sixth highest ranked men’s player.

However, not short on self-confidence, Oda has bigger ambitions for the rest of this season.

“I feel that I am at a level where I can play and win against the top players in the world, even at my current level. However, I am not satisfied at all, it is close to zero,” he says. “So, I am wondering if I can still grow. My goal for this year is to be in the Top 10. I have also been selected as a member of the World Team Cup junior team, and I think I will be seen by more fans this year than ever before.”

His recent success came during Oda’s third career visit to Europe. His first visit in 2019 saw him remain unbeaten at the ITF Junior Series Windmill Cup and the Cruyff Foundation Junior European Camp in the Netherlands, returning home to Japan with nine straight sets wins.

His second visit to Europe saw him leave Tarbes in France as the first Japanese player to win the boys’ singles title at the Cruyff Foundation Junior Masters.

Japan have never won the junior title at the BNP Paribas World Team Cup, but maybe more history beckons this September and October in Sardinia.

The next time the world will see Oda in competition it will again be in Europe. He is entered for both the Swiss Open and the British Open in July. His only previous Super Series tournament was the 2019 Japan Open, where he won the men’s second draw singles.

His only other experience of a Japan Open came in the inaugural wheelchair event at the 2019 Rakuten Japan Open, where the then-13-year-old met the likes of two-time Wimbledon champion Stefan Olsson and seven-time ITF World Champion Shingo Kunieda in his opening singles and doubles matches.

“All the players are very high level, but I'm preparing well for them. I believe that if I can perfect my tennis, I have a good chance,” he says, anticipating the challenges and the opportunities that lie ahead in Britain and Switzerland.

Ball sports have always played a big part in Oda’s life and have helped form his work ethic and ambition, on and off the court.

“Before I got sick, I played soccer,” he says “I remember joining a strong local team and training harder and harder every day, maybe harder than I do now. I have always loved ball sports and played with a ball all my life. I think I am good with the ball because of that. I think that has also influenced my game a little bit.

“At school, I try my best to train the English (language) skills that I need right now,” Oda adds. I practise (tennis) two weekdays in the evening after school. I also do four to five hours on Saturdays and two hours on Sundays. I try to do a lot of things that are necessary for me right now.”

Away from the tennis courts, Oda has a keen interest in martial arts and a focus that could easily be associated with such pursuits.

“There are many Japanese martial artists. Tennis and martial arts are completely different, but I find them very helpful,” he says. “I don't really believe in what other people tell me. Of course, if I can put it into practice and if it's good, I'll take it into consideration, but since I only believe in myself, I don't think it will affect me much.”

For a player who only made his UNIQLO Wheelchair Tennis Tour debut in 2018, Tokito Oda is a young man going places. What’s next? Watch this space.