Meet the rising stars of Aussie tennis ahead of the Australian Open
Attention tennis fans: these are the Aussie up-and-comers rising up the world rankings. The young guns reveal their dreams, the heroes they’ve modelled their games on and their secret weapons ahead of the AO.
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Meet the young guns of Australian tennis – the rising stars with lofty aims to follow in the footsteps of their heroes, from Roger Federer to Lleyton Hewitt and Ash Barty.
On the eve of the Summer of Tennis, we asked six young players to share their proudest moments, career goals, biggest challenges and how they broke into one of the world’s toughest individual sports.
OLIVIA GADECKI
Age: 22. From: Gold Coast, Qld
WTA ranking: 96
What is your biggest achievement in your tennis career to date? Representing Australia in the Billie Jean King Cup and the Olympics, and cracking the top 100 for the first time in singles and doubles this year.
What are your tennis goals for 2025? Doing well at the Australian Open, and the Australian summer in general. It’s such an amazing time of the year for us Aussies and to start the year off well would really set me up for the rest of the year. It would be amazing to go well with the home crowd.
What are your career tennis goals?To be top 10 in singles and doubles, to keep competing, stay healthy and enjoying the game. To win all the Grand Slams would be amazing, I would love to win Wimbledon – that’s top of my list.
What made you want to pursue a tennis career?It allows you to meet people, travel the world, it puts you in uncomfortable positions where you can learn a lot about yourself. We’re really lucky as women to have this opportunity to earn and set ourselves up for life in a sporting career.
Who is your tennis hero?I used to be a Victoria Azarenka fan. Growing up, I would watch her a lot, along with Serena Williams. But in recent years, my hero has been Ash Barty. She’s shown you can play tennis and have a life outside of that, still be a normal person and enjoy the little things in life. She’s definitely my hero.
What is your biggest weapon on the court? My serve and forehand. I think I hit them very well and they’re a big advantage. I really strive to start the point well with my serve and look for my forehand.
What is the biggest challenge you are facing or have faced in tennis? Constantly battling the questions, ‘Am I good enough, is this the right thing or will this work?’ But at the end of the day, if you’ve got the right intentions and you put your head down and work, good things will come. It’s important to know that, no matter what, you are amazing and valued and there’s more to you than Olivia the tennis player.
Who is another young gun Aussie fans should watch out for? There are many young gun Aussies coming through, but I especially think (junior world No.1) Emerson Jones is one to watch. She has been doing incredibly well these last couple of months. She’s young, she’s fierce, she’s hungry. It’s exciting for Aussie tennis.
What’s next for you? I will be competing at the Adelaide International.
RINKY HIJIKATA
Age: 23. From: Sydney, NSW
ATP ranking: 73
What is your biggest achievement in your tennis career to date? Winning the Australian Open doubles title with Jason Kubler and making the fourth round of the US Open in 2023.
What are your tennis goals for 2025? I’d love to make a big push in 2025, starting with the Brisbane and Adelaide Internationals and Australian Open. I love playing at home, so I’d love to make a deep run in any of these tournaments, especially AO. The conditions suit me and I’ve been putting in a lot of hard work.
What are your career tennis goals? My dream ever since I picked up a racquet was to win a Grand Slam one day – Wimbledon is the one you dream of winning when you’re a kid – and playing for Australia. I’ve always loved watching everyone put on the green and gold and play for their country, I think that’s the pinnacle of tennis. To win Davis Cup with the Aussie team would definitely be up there.
What made you want to pursue a tennis career?When I was a kid, I loved playing whatever sport I could and I’ve always been a very competitive person. Tennis was the sport I had a bit of natural ability in. I also loved the one-on-one aspect, it’s just you and your opponent. It’s a big test of character to be out there by yourself and to be put under serious pressure in front of big crowds and against really good opponents.
Who is your tennis hero? My favourite players growing up were Lleyton Hewitt and Kei Nishikori. Rusty (Hewitt) was the top Aussie and I just loved the way he went about it – he was a very competitive, energetic player. I loved watching him play in Australia, using the home crowd, and the way he fought until the end every single time he was on the court. I try to bring that in my own game. Nishikori is an explosive player, also very entertaining to watch but for different reasons. He’s more level-headed and more of a calming presence on the court, but has so many weapons.
What is your biggest weapon on the court?I can generate good pace on my forehand, and spread the court well and hit all my spots. When I’m on, that’s the shot I do the most damage with.
What is the biggest challenge you are facing or have faced in tennis? Learning how to lose a lot. You’re playing 30 to 35 weeks a year and if you finish the year with a title, it’s been a bloody good year. It’s difficult, having to pick yourself up, regroup, go back to the drawing board and come back better – only to lose again. That’s something that’s unique to tennis and definitely tests your character.
Who is another young gun Aussie fans should watch out for? Australia has a lot of good juniors coming up, but it’s hard to look past (Gold Coast siblings) Hayden and Emerson Jones. Hayden got to top 10, and Emerson got to No.1 in the world (in juniors). There’s a bright future ahead for both of them, they’re going to come on in leaps and bounds in the next couple of years, if not this upcoming year.
What’s next for you? I’ll be competing in the Adelaide International. Hopefully, I have a long stay there.
DESTANEE AIAVA
Age: 24. From: Melbourne, Vic
WTA ranking: 200
What is your biggest achievement in your tennis career to date? Qualifying for the US Open this year.
What are your tennis goals for 2025? To qualify for the main draw again at the Australian Open, and hopefully get my ranking up to the top 150.
What are your career tennis goals? To get inside the top 100 and compete in all the main draw Grand Slams, in singles and doubles.
What made you want to pursue a tennis career? The perks that came with tennis, and the fact that it was an individual sport. I wasn’t really good with team sports when I was younger, so I’m pretty sure that’s what made me want to keep playing tennis.
Who is your tennis hero? My mum (Rosie), even though she didn’t play tennis growing up. She really helped me at a key point in my life and took on the coaching role when I was 14. She made me who I am today, especially in my tennis career.
What is your biggest weapon on the court? My physicality. I think I have more strength than a lot of the girls and I can use that to my advantage.
What is the biggest challenge you are facing or have faced in tennis? The financial side and the homesickness I get while travelling. This is probably the most expensive sport in the world to play, and if you’re not in the rankings that allow you to earn good money, it is quite tough, especially trying to pay for accommodation, flights and everything that comes with the sport.
Who is another young gun Aussie fans should watch out for? Emerson Jones, she’s really good – she beat me a couple of weeks ago. She’s going to keep improving. Everyone should be excited to watch her at AO 2025.
What’s next for you? I’ll be playing Australian Open qualifying during AO Opening Week, then, hopefully, I can get into the main draw.
TRISTAN SCHOOLKATE
Age: 23. From: Perth, WA
ATP ranking: 168
What is your biggest achievement in your tennis career to date? Winning my first Grand Slam main draw match at the US Open 2024, or winning my first ATP Challenger in Guangzhou, China, in May.
What are your tennis goals for 2025?To break into the top 100 in the ATP singles rankings, qualify for the Australian Open and win my first main draw singles match at the AO.
What are your career tennis goals? To compete in all four Grand Slam main draws, and to represent Australia at the Davis Cup and the Olympics.
What made you want to pursue a career in tennis? I started tennis when I was four, my father was a tennis coach and introduced me to the sport. I have always loved the game and kept improving as I grew older. Eventually the time came where I truly believed I could be a professional tennis player and it could become a career.
Who is your tennis hero? Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was my favourite player growing up. I loved the way he played and how he could bring such great energy to light up the crowds. I was a ballkid for one of his matches at the Hopman Cup when I was a junior, that was an exciting experience.
What is your biggest weapon on the court? My serve. It’s something I have total control of and is arguably one of the most important shots in tennis. It can keep me in matches and take the game out of my opponent’s hands.
What is the biggest challenge you are facing or have faced in tennis? The week-in, week-out travel, and having to learn how to lose almost every single week. That’s the reality of what it’s like on the tour.
Who is another young gun Aussie fans should watch out for? Rinky Hijikata. We are the same age and grew up playing juniors together. Rinky is a great competitor who is awesome for any fan to watch, he will be sure to get you fired up if you’re in the crowd supporting him.
What’s next for you? Pending decisions around wildcards, I will be competing in AO qualifying. If I receive a main draw wildcard, I would most likely be trying to play the Adelaide International.
ADAM WALTON
Age: 25. From: Home Hill, Qld
ATP ranking: 93
What is your biggest achievement in your tennis career to date? Winning the final of an ATP Challenger event in Taipei in May. It was for my third Challenger title (with the opportunity) to become a top-100 player for the first time, which was so special, and make the Wimbledon main draw all in one match. I won 7-6 in the third set. That’s going to be a pretty hard achievement to top.
What are your tennis goals for 2025? I want to keep improving, keep trusting the process, to keep climbing the rankings and end higher than where I finish at the end of this year. I’d love to win a round at the Australian Open.
What are your career tennis goals? Just to be the best tennis player I can. I’ve come a long way in the last couple of years and I think my best tennis is still yet to come. I need to keep working hard and the results will take care of themselves.
What made you want to pursue a tennis career? I played a lot of different sports growing up but, ultimately, heading to America for college tennis, I treated the tennis side of things more professionally. After I graduated, I thought, ‘Let’s give this thing a shot.’ I’d been playing my whole life and had great success straight off the bat, which made me want to keep playing.
Who is your tennis hero? Novak Djokovic. I just think he’s the most complete player we’ve had in our generation. He’s the ultimate idol to look up to.
What is your biggest weapon on the court? My first serve. You have complete control of that shot, it’s not dependent on what the opponent is doing, so you can get really honed in and focused on that shot.
What is the biggest challenge you are facing or have faced in tennis? Long periods of tournaments in a row. It’s very mentally taxing. I’ve played a lot this year – I was always chasing Grand Slam cuts, so I had reasons to have a very full schedule. Hopefully in 2025, I don’t have to play as may tournaments.
Who is another young gun Aussie fans should watch out for? Hayden Jones. He’s got a good game and I’ll be keen to see how he progresses.
What’s next for you? I’ll be in Adelaide (for the Adelaide International), hopefully for as long in possible.
MAYA JOINT
Age: 18. From: Grosse Pointe, Michigan, USA (now trains at Tennis Australia’s National Tennis Academy in Brisbane)
WTA ranking: 116
What is your biggest achievement in your tennis career to date? Winning a match at the US Open this year. It was crazy. I didn’t think I was going to get through qualies, but I was playing well in the main draw match, I felt pretty confident from my three wins in qualies. I got close to the finish line and got really nervous – I was up 5-0 and it got to 5-5. I’m glad I was able to get it back.
What are your tennis goals for 2025? I want to get to the main draw of each Grand Slam, win a WTA 125 tournament and make the top 90.
What are your career tennis goals?I want to play at the Olympics, win a gold medal there, win a Grand Slam, be No.1 in the world.
What made you want to pursue a tennis career?I lived really close to tennis courts in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, so I just kind of wandered over there and started.
Who is your tennis hero? I love Roger Federer. He seems like the most amazing person off the court and on the court, he’s so calm. He makes it look effortless, which I know takes a lot of hard work.
What is your biggest weapon on the court?My backhand, and I’m pretty fast so I can get to a lot of balls, which makes the opponent miss when they’re under pressure.
Who is another young gun Aussie fans should watch out for? Emerson Jones, she has been doing unreal in juniors, and in pros now as well. She’s such a nice person, so it’s even better to see someone like that do well.
What’s next for you? I’ll be playing in the Brisbane International and Australian Open, maybe Hobart and Adelaide depending on if I get a wildcard or not.
Originally published as Meet the rising stars of Aussie tennis ahead of the Australian Open
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