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Tennis has seen several talented youngsters like CiCi Bellis and Bernard Tomic, who excelled as juniors but could not attain similar success as senior professionals.
We have seen many players mesmerize spectators and leave their mark in the history of tennis. Some of the sport's finest exponents attained success on the junior circuit and were able to carry that form into their senior careers.
These include Roger Federer, Rod Laver, Andy Murray, Evonne Goolagong and Justine Henin, among others.
Among current stars, Alexander Zverev, Andrey Rublev and Iga Swiatek were junior Grand Slam champions. They have also done very well in their respective senior careers so far.
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A number of players have been successful on the junior circuit and were expected to achieve big in their careers. However, they fell short due to a variety of factors, including injury, inconsistency and more.
So without any further ado, let us take a look at seven teen sensations and what they are doing now.
#1 CiCi Bellis
CiCi Bellis had a pretty good junior career and eventually became the junior World No. 1 at the end of 2014. This earned her the title of the ITF World Champion.
That year, the American made her Grand Slam debut at the US Open, aged only 15 and stunned 12th seed Dominika Cibulkova in the first round.
Bellis excelled on the ITF circuit, winning seven titles, and even entered the top 40 of the WTA rankings in 2017. That year, she beat then-World No. 6 Agnieszka Radwanska in Dubai and was later adjudged the WTA Newcomer of the Year.
Things looked to be on the upside for Bellis as she reached the quarterfinals of the 2018 Qatar Open, beating Karolina Pliskova in the process. However, persistent injuries hampered the American and she was eventually forced to retire in January 2022.
Bellis was aged only 22 when she decided to walk away from the sport.
#2 Bernard Tomic
Australia's Bernard Tomic won the Boys' Singles title at the Australian Open and Wimbledon in 2008 and 2009 respectively. By the time he entered the ATP Tour, big things were expected from him.
Tomic reached the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in 2011, becoming the youngest player to reach the last eight of the tournament since Boris Becker in 1986. He also managed to push Novak Djokovic to four sets before suffering defeat.
Tomic's attitude and controversial behavior brought him plenty of criticism, but he soon entered the top 20 of the ATP rankings, winning a few titles along the way. The Australian reached a career-high ranking of 17th and reached the quarterfinals of three Masters 1000 events.
However, Tomic endured a severe downfall and failed to qualify for the Australian Open in 2018. He then featured on the reality TV show "I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here," but withdrew after just three days as he intended to return to tennis.
Tomic has been unable to regain his old form and is currently ranked 619th in the world.
#3 Taylor Townsend
Another junior World No. 1, Taylor Townsend won the Australian Open girls' singles title in 2012. She also had two girls' doubles majors to her name, winning Wimbledon and the US Open in 2012.
Townsend soon started competing on the WTA Tour and entered the Top 100 of the rankings in 2015. The American reached a career-high ranking of 61st in 2018 and registered the biggest victory of her career the following year. She stunned then-World No. 4 Simona Halep in the second round of the 2019 US Open.
She went on to reach the last 16 of the tournament before losing 1-6, 6-4, 2-6 to eventual champion Bianca Andreescu. Townsend was the only player to take a set off the Canadian during the 2019 US Open.
The American then took a hiatus from tennis due to her pregnancy and returned to action this season. Townsend partnered Madison Keys at the French Open and the pair reached the semifinals before losing to Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula.
#4 Jeremy Chardy
Jeremy Chardy had a pretty successful junior career as he won the boys' singles title at Wimbledon in 2005 and also reached the final of the US Open that year. The Frenchman soon entered the ATP Tour and made it to at least the fourth round of every Grand Slam.
His best run was reaching the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, where he lost to eventual runner-up Andy Murray. Chardy also reached the semifinals of the Canadian Masters in 2015. Unfortunately, the Frenchman could not attain the same amount of success he had on the junior circuit on the ATP Tour.
Chardy has one ATP title to his name and is currently ranked 969th in the world.
#5 Maria Salerni
Argentina's Maria Salerni had an illustrious junior career as she won the girls' singles title at Wimbledon and the US Open in 2000. Expectations were high and it looked like she could achieve big things on the WTA Tour.
However, like many others, Salerni's senior career simply didn't take off after her impressive displays as a junior. She could only go as high as 65th in the WTA rankings and never went past the second round at a Grand Slam.
The Argentine was eventually forced to retire in 2009 due to a series of injuries.
#6 Jiri Vesely
Jiri Vesely won the Australian Open's boys' singles title in 2011 and also reached the finals of Wimbledon and the US Open that year. He became a regular on the ATP tour a few years after that and even reached a career-high ranking of World No. 35.
Vesely won two ATP titles and reached the last 16 of Wimbledon twice. However, he has not been able to repeat his exploits from his time on the junior circuit.
The Czech reached the final of the Dubai Tennis Championships this season, beating Novak Djokovic in the process. However, he lost in the title clash against Andrey Rublev.
#7 Gianluigi Quinzi
Italy's Gianluigi Quinzi excelled on the junior circuit as he was the World No. 1 and won the boys' singles title at Wimbledon in 2013. He also helped his nation win the Junior Davis Cup in 2012.
The Italian then competed in the inaugural edition of the NextGen ATP Finals and was eliminated in the opening round. Unfortunately, Quinzi could not handle his fame and success on the junior circuit, and was unable to do well as a senior professional.
The Italian eventually announced his retirement from the sport aged just 25.
