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The talent breeding ground that the junior circuit always represents leaves us a new gem with a designation of origin: Slovenia. In the 2026 Australian Open, the youngest champion stands at 1.90 meters, with an immense ball speed, and promises to further evolve as a tennis player by employing his net play. His name is Ziga Sesko, who triumphed in only his third (!) junior Grand Slam at 17 years old and promises to fully enter the professional circuit… with the support of the Rafa Nadal Academy.
Because Ziga has a dream in mind: become the greatest player in a country better known for its cycling or basketball tradition. In the land of Luka Doncic or Tadej Pogacar, a very powerful player’s project emerges, with an absolutely galactic forehand and a mold well-suited to 21st-century tennis. Strong hitting and speed at such a young age; however, with a humble mentality that drives him to see there are still many aspects to improve and evolve.
Sesko was crowned champion of the Australian Junior Open in his third Grand Slam, an achievement that has raised doubts in planning the rest of the season. Born in 2008, he mentioned that starting his journey as a professional was his major goal in 2026, but his sudden success in oceanic lands may reshape his roadmap. What won’t change, however, is his arrival at the Rafa Nadal Academy: where he conducted a significant part of his preseason, for three weeks; and where he will join in the coming weeks, becoming one of the most exciting prospects of the Balearic talent factory.
Who is Ziga Sesko? The Slovenian explains his path to the elite
Following the triumph in the final that paved the way for Alcaraz vs. Djokovic, no one better than Ziga himself to narrate his origins, his journey before reaching the elite, and the excitement of spreading tennis throughout Slovenia. “Winning a Grand Slam is something every child dreams of. Achieving it, I still haven’t fully absorbed, but tomorrow I will feel it as something very special. My mother and my brother came from Slovenia just to support me; it’s great to share this with them. It’s the best victory of my life. The crowd gave me a lot of motivation; I heard chants from some Slovenes: we are a small country, so I was surprised that so many people came to support me. I guess if they enjoy my style of tennis, that makes me feel special.
I was born and raised in a small city in Slovenia, with around 10,000 people, Hrastnik. I started playing tennis there, at the social club, with my father. Many people support me there; I don’t know if I’m as famous in the rest of Slovenia (smiles). My father was a table tennis player, and when they started building courts in our town, he fell in love with tennis and began playing. There are only four outdoor clay courts, and in winter, it’s too cold to play. When I was young, I spent a lot of time in the club with my father, so the first time I hit a ball was with him, there.
My father is very involved in my tennis: when I was young, he was my main coach. Later, we added another coach to assist him, and when I was 11 or 12, I went to a club 20 minutes from my town called Litija, the club in which I am still registered in Slovenia. There, I could train with more kids. Then, Nik Razborsek, the current coach of Kaja Juvan, became my coach. When he started working with Kaja, he didn’t have much time for me anymore, so we decided that I should go to Italy.
I started training at the Ricardo Piatti Academy in Bordighera. I was there for a year and a half. I improved a lot; my body grew very quickly, to the point where I felt pain due to that growth. The physical trainers did great work in developing my body. I’m very grateful for all they did for me and the support they provided. This year, when I left, I started traveling with my father. We progressed throughout 2025 at the junior level, also with the help of our Davis Cup coach, Grega Zemlja, who reached world number 43,” Ziga candidly explained.
Ziga Sesko will continue his progression at the Rafa Nadal Academy, refining an emerging talent
The next stage, as mentioned earlier, bears a name and surname: Rafa Nadal Academy, his home from now on. “I’ll be there all year, yes. I did three weeks of preseason with them at the Academy. I haven’t met Rafa yet, though: I saw he was around, but I haven’t seen him. I’ve done great preseason work, tweaking my forehand and my serve a bit, improving significantly. It’s working wonders, and I’m very grateful for the support from the Academy coaches: they called me every day, waking up at 3 or 4 in the morning to watch my matches, which means a lot to me.”
The goal is to polish a diamond that possesses the necessary ball speed to adapt to present-day tennis, a player profile more comfortable on hard court surfaces, especially indoors, than on the clay courts he grew up playing in. However, one aspect sets him apart: his eagerness to make net play a key element. “That’s my game; I like going for the points, I have an aggressive style. I’d say I have a very good volley; in the final, I won several points with it, and that’s what my father always tells me, to move forward and be aggressive. We’ve worked a lot on my transitional game, finishing points with volleys or smashes, and that’s helping me a lot.”
Ziga’s best quality? The humility he still demonstrates, with a trait that might surprise in the age of instant everything and social media: he turned off his mobile phone in the last two days to avoid any kind of distraction on his path to the title. “I haven’t used my phone in the last two days; I try to stay away from the noise. I received notifications from my friends, from people in Slovenia, but I tried not to reply to most: I’m very thankful to them, but I wanted to stay focused on the tournament. Now it’s time to reply to everyone; now I can truly enjoy (laughs).” Next stop, the Davis Cup and the professional circuit, where the new Balkan gem is eagerly awaited. Welcome to the big leagues, Ziga.
This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Así es Ziga Sesko, la perla eslovena que triunfó en Australia y comenzará a trabajar en la Rafa Nadal Academy