Tomasz Berkieta

Tomasz Berkieta
Country (sports) Poland
Born (2006-07-21) 21 July 2006 (age 18)
Warsaw, Poland
Height1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
PlaysRight handed (two-handed backhand)
CoachPiotr Sierzputowski
Prize moneyUS $11,431
Singles
Career record1–0 (at ATP Tour level, Grand Slam level, and in Davis Cup)
Career titles0
Highest rankingNo. 915 (30 September 2024)
Current rankingNo. 916 (21 October 2024)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open JuniorSF (2023)
French Open JuniorF (2024)
Wimbledon JuniorQF (2023)
US Open Junior1R (2023)
Doubles
Career record0–0 (at ATP Tour level, Grand Slam level, and in Davis Cup)
Career titles0
Highest rankingNo. 1430 (23 September 2024)
Current rankingNo. 1435 (21 October 2024)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open Junior2R (2023, 2024)
French Open Junior2R (2024)
Wimbledon JuniorQF (2023)
US Open Junior2R (2023)
Last updated on: 21 October 2024.

Tomasz Berkieta (Polish: [ˈtɔmaʐ bɛrˈkʲɛta]; born 21 July 2006) is a Polish tennis player. He has a career high ITF junior combined ranking of No. 6, achieved on 8 July 2024.

Early life and background

Berkieta was born in Warsaw to Kamil Berkieta and Magdalena Sawicka.[1][2] His mother is a tennis coach who played the sport until the age of 16, when she had to retire due to injury.[3][4]

While volunteering as a ball boy at the 2013 Davis Cup World Group play-offs, Berkieta was hit in the stomach by a 230 km/h (140 mph) serve from Nick Kyrgios and had to exit the court.[5]

He is currently coached by Piotr Sierzputowski, the former coach of Iga Świątek,[2] and trains at the Legia Tennis Centre in Warsaw.[6]

Junior career

In January 2022, Berkieta reached the semifinal of the J4 Eintracht Frankfurt event.[7] The following month, he won his maiden ITF Junior title at the J5 DeSki Warsaw Cup. He also won the doubles title with Piotr Czaczkowski.[8] In March, he won back-to-back titles at the J4 Ādaži Open and the J4 Aphrodite Cup in Nicosia.[9][10] He later reached the final of the J3 Croatia Open in Čakovec and the J3 Charlie Berszakiewicz Memorial tournament in Kraków.[11] He won his final title of the year in September, at the J2 Al-Solaimaneyah Junior Tournament in Cairo.[12]

He made his junior Grand Slam debut at the 2023 Australian Open, where he reached the semifinal in singles.[13] He lost in the first round of the French Open,[14] but reached the quarterfinal at Wimbledon.[15] In October 2023, he won the J200 event in Vigo[16] and reached the final of the J300 event in Sanxenxo.[17]

At the 2024 Australian Open, he recorded a 233 km/h (145 mph) serve, the fastest serve of the tournament.[18][19] Unseeded at the French Open, he reached his first junior Grand Slam final with wins over Izan Almazán Valiente, sixth seed Hayden Jones, qualifier Charlie Robertson, wildcard Moïse Kouamé, and Lorenzo Carboni.[20] He lost in the final to fifth seed Kaylan Bigun.[21]

Professional career

In August 2022, Berkieta made his ITF Men's World Tennis Tour main draw debut as a wildcard at the M25 Poznań.[22] In August 2023, he made his ATP Challenger Tour main draw debut as a wildcard at the Kozerki Open.[23]

He represented Poland in the 2023 Davis Cup World Group II, where he recorded a win over Xavier Lawrence of Barbados.[5]

ITF World Tennis Tour finals

Singles: 1 (1 runner-up)

Legend
ITF WTT (0–1)
Result W–L    Date    Tournament Tier Surface Opponent Score
Loss 0–1 Sep 2024 M15 Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt WTT Hard Evgenii Tiurnev 5–7, 1–6

Doubles: 1 (1 runner-up)

Legend
ITF WTT (0–1)
Result W–L    Date    Tournament Tier Surface Partner Opponents Score
Loss 0–1 Aug 2024 M15 Szczawno-Zdrój, Poland WTT Clay Poland Mateusz Lange Poland Filip Pieczonka
Poland Szymon Kielan 		4–6, 4–6

Junior Grand Slam finals

Singles: 1 (1 runner-up)

Result Year Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Loss 2024 French Open Clay United States Kaylan Bigun 6–4, 3–6, 3–6

References

  1. ^ Lasia, Łukasz (12 July 2023). "Tomasz Berkieta zagra o ćwierćfinał juniorskiego Wimbledonu". Eurosport (in Polish). Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  2. ^ a b Jachimiak, Łukasz (7 June 2024). "Były trener Igi Świątek powiedział: "Tomek, tylko to!" I mamy finał Roland Garros". Sport.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  3. ^ Kalisz, Sara (27 February 2023). ""Nowy Hurkacz" ma innego idola. "Być jego grzeczniejszą wersją"". TVP Sport (in Polish). Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  4. ^ Pasternak, Dominik (31 January 2023). "Tenis od dziecka! Matka polskiej nadziei wspomina jego początki na korcie". TVP Sport (in Polish). Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  5. ^ a b Walsh, Courtney (5 June 2024). "Scuba fan Berkieta dives into quarters and reveals quirky Kyrgios link". International Tennis Federation. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  6. ^ Szymczyk, Marcin (7 June 2024). "Tenis: Berkieta w finale juniorskiego French Open!". Legia Warszawa (in Polish). Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  7. ^ "Die Sieger stehen fest". Eintracht Frankfurt (in German). 10 January 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  8. ^ "Berkieta wygrał ITF J5 DeSki Warsaw Cup 2022". Legia Warszawa (in Polish). 19 February 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  9. ^ "Tenis. Tomasz Berkieta triumfował w turnieju ITF juniorów w Adazi". Polski Tenis (in Polish). 20 March 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  10. ^ "Tenis. Tomasz Berkieta zwyciężył w turnieju ITF juniorów w Nikozji". Polski Tenis (in Polish). 28 March 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  11. ^ "Tenis. Finały Tomasza Berkiety w turnieju ITF juniorów w Cakovcu". Polski Tenis (in Polish). 28 May 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  12. ^ "Wygrana Berkiety w turnieju w Kairze". Legia Warsawa (in Polish). 16 September 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  13. ^ Evans, Richard (27 January 2023). "Tien and Blockx secure Australian Open boys' final showdown". International Tennis Federation. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  14. ^ Smoliński, Rafał (4 June 2023). "Smutna niespodzianka. Polak nie podbije Rolanda Garrosa". Wirtualna Polska (in Polish). Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  15. ^ McLean, Ross (13 July 2023). "Demin: I am playing some of the best tennis of my career". International Tennis Federation. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  16. ^ Martínez, Francisco (22 January 2024). "Un júnior de 17 años saca a 233 kilómetros por hora en el Open de Australia... Y pierde el punto". La Razón (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  17. ^ Kwiatkowski, Olgierd (2 January 2024). "Polak w pierwszej dziesiątce na świecie. Przebił osiągnięcie Huberta Hurkacza". Interia (in Polish). Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  18. ^ Llewelyn Evans, Richard (22 January 2024). "Big-serving Berkieta unafraid to scale new heights at Australian Open". International Tennis Federation. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  19. ^ Laughton, Max (22 January 2024). "Juniors player hits 'fastest serve in Australian Open history'... but doesn't even win the point". Fox Sports. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  20. ^ Kołsut, Kamil (7 June 2024). "Roland Garros. Kim jest Tomasz Berkieta, który pokonał wielką nadzieję Francuzów". Rzeczpospolita (in Polish). Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  21. ^ Oddo, Chris (8 June 2024). "Bigun streaks past Berkieta for Roland-Garros boys' title". Roland-Garros. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  22. ^ Rutkowski, Piotr (31 January 2023). "Tomasz Berkieta w PZT Team. Wyjawił też swoje cele krótko- i długofalowe. Mierzy wysoko". Gazeta Krakowska (in Polish). Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  23. ^ Smoliński, Rafał (15 August 2023). "Polak zadebiutował na poziomie challengerów. Od rywala dzieliło go 1100 miejsc". Wirtualna Polska (in Polish). Retrieved 8 June 2024.