British 16-year-olds Hannah Klugman and Mika Stojsavljevic ready to step up to professional tennis

Two British 16-year-olds who made their Wimbledon main-draw debuts this summer have told BBC Sport they are ready to begin the next phase of their careers and step into the senior professional ranks.

Hannah Klugman, who has risen to a career-high junior ranking of world No. 2 after reaching the French Open final, the US Open semi-finals and the Wimbledon quarter-finals this year, said she felt she had taken all she could from junior competition. "I think I'm done with juniors now, I'm kind of ready to step into the seniors," Klugman said in New York. "I came through at such a young age so I've had a lot of exposure. I've done three full years doing this so it's time to move on."

Mika Stojsavljevic is already a junior Grand Slam champion, having won the Girls' US Open in 2024, and has also begun to make inroads on the professional circuit. She won a $35,000 ITF World Tennis Tour event in Nottingham in April 2024, collecting $3,935 and 35 ranking points, and pushed then-world No. 57 Moyuka Uchijima to a third-set tiebreak on her WTA main-draw debut at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo last October.

"I feel my game is ready to play pro tennis," Stojsavljevic said. "I took a top-60 player to a tough three sets in the first WTA main draw I played and I've won an ITF title. So I know when I'm playing well I can compete with players at the top level and that's what I'm looking to build on and working towards from now on."

Both players made their professional debuts at 14 and are limited by the Women’s Tennis Association age-eligibility rules that govern the transition from junior to senior tournaments. Sixteen-year-olds are permitted to enter 12 professional tournaments each year, with those finishing the year inside the top five of the junior rankings allowed an additional four events.

That restriction means the 2025 professional calendar can be expected to feature more of Klugman and Stojsavljevic as they manage the number of senior events they play while maintaining other commitments. Klugman, who has been coached by Ben Haran since she was nine and works with fitness trainer Jez Green and physio Will Herbert, has indicated she may still play a junior Grand Slam next June at Roland Garros but believes junior matches offer diminishing returns. "These matches — I don't have to play well to win them. I can play a five out of 10 and get the win, and I know in seniors I definitely can't do that," she said. "Juniors is just a stepping stone. I'd love to win a junior Slam — I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to — but every time my team reminds me it doesn't mean anything."

Stojsavljevic is a graduate of the Lawn Tennis Association's Loughborough Academy and is now coached by Jeremy Bates. She plans to continue her education while competing, with A-levels in English literature and politics scheduled alongside her playing commitments. She has described her game as a clean, powerful ball-striking style and cites Maria Sharapova and Novak Djokovic among her idols. Klugman, who counts Ash Barty and Emma Navarro among players she admires, said she uses slice and changes of rhythm to disrupt opponents and can serve-and-volley effectively.

Not everyone urges an immediate departure from junior competition. Annabel Croft, who won junior Wimbledon at 17 and later played senior events at the same time, said she understood the drive to advance but warned of missed opportunities in juniors. "When I was playing juniors, I was exactly like Hannah," Croft said. "...In hindsight, it's one of my proudest moments and I realise I am going to be in that trophy cabinet forevermore. I think that no matter what happens she has got plenty of time to be putting herself up against the seniors but the one thing you can say about juniors is that you will never ever get that time again."

Klugman and Stojsavljevic have long histories on the domestic junior circuit and international events, having played each other since under-10 competitions. With WTA age limits in place and both players already sampling senior-level competition, the coming year is likely to be a carefully managed period in which they balance development, education and the gradual increase of professional entries.

Coaching teams, past results and the WTA's tournament caps will shape their schedules as they seek ranking points and experience on the senior tour. Their progress will be watched closely in Britain, where both have fast-tracked through national pathways and this year shared exposure on tennis's biggest stages, including Wimbledon and the junior Grand Slams.