Tupitsyna into quarters as her dream Australian Open run continues
Before she had time to even wipe her face with a towel after beating Ukraine’s Sofiia Bielinska 6-2 7-6(5), Ekaterina Tupitsyna headed to the side of court No. 13 where a small posse of fans were waiting.
She smiled for a selfie, signed a few oversized tennis balls and then accepted a couple more selfie requests. Life at the Australian Open Junior Championships is all very new for the 17-year-old, who is ranked No. 92 in the ITF World Tennis Tour girls' rankings.
“I'm very happy that they love my tennis and they said 'good luck' to me," said Tupitsyna. "I'm very happy that I’m in Australia and that the people are so friendly. It’s my dream to play here.”
This is Tupitsyna's first trip to Australia and, while she is not fluent, to her immense credit she was unafraid to conduct her post-match media duties in English.
“I'm very tired," she added. "The tie-break at the end was difficult. It was like waves, at one point I was more active than her, but then she played more active and that's why we had very tough points. But I’m happy."
Born and raised in Moscow, Ekaterina has not come to Melbourne alone – far from it.
“We have a team – a physical coach, doctor and tennis coaches, while I have a coach from our academy, but not my coach – a coach for everyone,” she said.
Reaching the quarter-final of a Junior Grand Slam is uncharted territory for Tupitsyna. She has contested three Junior Grand Slam previously, but only recorded her first match-win on such a stage here in Melbourne.
She will face either China P.R.'s Xinran Sun or Denise Zoldakova of Czechia in the last eight, although plotting her progress is not on the agenda.
“When I win a match, I think about the next match only, I don't look at the one after,” she said. “Some players read everything but, no, that's not me.
“I don't look at my ranking, neither. That way, I think I can show my best and I can play very well.”
Tupitsyna trains and attends school in Khimki, a small city just north-west of Moscow, and the former training venue of Anastasia Potapova – the now naturalised Austrian and world No. 55. Day-to-day living arrangements in Khimki are flexible.
“Some days I live with my sister, some days with my mother and father and my little brother and some days with my grandfather and grandmother,” she said.
Everyone in the family will be checking on her progress this week.
“They'll be reading online, reading newspapers,” she said.
And texting? “Yes,” she beams.
Tupitsyna is showing no sign of nerves despite her run to the business end of the tournament. She is equally unnerved about the prospect of the ice bath she mentioned having immediately after her media duties.
Clearly, her on-court strength is matched by her off-court steel.
A full list of results from the 2026 Australian Open Junior Championships is available here.