2023 in Review: From historic NCAAs to junior successes, grassroots tennis thrives

The 2023 NCAA Championships also shed light on the importance of collegiate tennis as a pathway to the pro tour. Americans Ethan Quinn and the duo of Fiona Crawley and Carson Tanguilig were all awarded US Open wild cards as Americans who won Division I individual championships. Quinn fell in the first round in Queens, as did Crawley and Tanguilig. However, Crawley also fought her way through qualifying to earn a spot in the singles main draw. 

This was only part of the collegiate representation at the 2023 US Open, as former NCAA champs made waves in New York.

2022 singles champion Peyton Stearns (University of Texas) reached the fourth round before losing to Marketa Vondrousova. Meanwhile, Ben Shelton, a former University of Florida Gator, who won both a singles and team title, made a deep run to the US Open semifinals in singles and mixed doubles.

Ngounoue later claimed the girls’ singles title at Wimbledon, and after winning the USTA Girls’ 18s National Championship, she earned a wild card into the women’s main draw of the US Open. In the women’s doubles draw, she made a run to the third round alongside Robin Montgomery.

Katherine Hui, the runner-up at the 18s National Championship, won the girls’ title in Queens, and didn’t lose a single set. The unseeded player and Stanford freshman lost to former Top 10 player Eugenie Bouchard in the first round of hte women's qualifying draw, but said what she learned from the match helped her claim the junior title. The same day, Tien finished as the boys’ singles runner-up after a tough three-setter.

Additionally, U.S. defended its Junior BJK Cup title in the fall, winning the event for the fifth time in six years. Junior world No. 14 Iva Jovic, No. 21 Tyra Grant and No. 49 Alanis Hamilton didn’t lose a single set in six ties in Cordoba, Spain.

The ITF Masters World Individual Championships immediately followed the team competition, and players lifted trophies in 12 divisions. The top American players were Donna Fales of Coral Gables, Fla., and San Diego’s Roz King. Fales won her third consecutive Women’s 80+ singles title and claimed the doubles and mixed doubles titles, while King won the Women’s 85+ singles and doubles titles. King’s singles title was the fourth world singles title of her career.

Six other teams made the finals for their division, which resulted in all Americans finishing as champions or runners-up. This year’s teams took home titles in the Gardner Mulloy Cup (men’s 80 & over), Lorne Main Cup (men’s 85 & over), Althea Gibson Cup (women’s 70 & over), and Angela Mortimer Cup (women’s 85 & over).

In July, the USTA Foundation teamed up with Frances Tiafoe, himself an NJTL alumnus, to launch the Frances Tiafoe Fund, which will provide philanthropic support to NJTL youth, and in September, the annual USTA Foundation Opening Night Gala raised a record amount of funds totaling over $3 million on the first night of the 2023 US Open. This money helps to support NJTL across the country provide tennis and academic programming in their communities.

“The generosity of our donors and corporate partners will have a tangible impact on tens of thousands of young people across the country,” said USTA Foundation Board President Kathleen Wu. “We are grateful for their support of our mission and commitment to helping us develop the next generation of leaders on and off the tennis court."

In March, H.R.1831 was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. No female athlete has ever been awarded the nation’s highest civilian honor bestowed by Congress, although 11 men and the 1980 Olympic Team have received it. The bill was introduced by Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, a Republican from Pennsylvania, and the Democratic co-lead was Rep. Mikie Sherrill from New Jersey. While it has since been introduced in the Senate, there is still a need for more support, and the Women’s Sports Foundation has a tool to help you reach out to your representatives and ask them to sponsor and support the bill.

Additionally, members of 16 USTA sections were honored for their contributions to equality in tennis. These women were nominated by those in their section for their work at the grassroots level in order to even the playing field for all. There was an event held for them before the women’s semifinals at the 2023 US Open, and honorees were able to take a photo with Billie Jean King before attending a panel with King, Venus Williams and Telva McGruder, the chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer at General Motors, moderated by award-winning journalist Christiane Amanpour.