There’s always darkness before dawn. After suffering a pectoral injury at Wimbledon earlier in July, Grigor Dimitrov, of Bulgaria, was forced to withdraw from the US Open, ending his streak of 58 consecutive Grand Slam appearances. But there is now a silver lining: On Saturday, two of his up-and-coming compatriots will contest the 2025 US Open boys’ singles final for the chance to become the first Bulgarian to lift a junior championship trophy at Flushing Meadows since Dimitrov himself achieved the feat in 2008. World No. 1 Ivan Ivanov will also vie to become the first junior to claim both the Wimbledon and US Open titles in one season since Canada’s Filip Peliwo in 2012… and Dimitrov, again, in 2008.
Ivanov was ruthless in his semifinal against Zangar Nurlanuly of Kazakhstan, needing just over an hour to dismiss the world No. 54, 6-1, 6-4. This was no guarantee: Nurlanuly had dispatched three seeds in a row, two in straight sets. (And against No. 6 Oskari Paldanius of Finland, the Kazakh player came back from a set down to drop just three games the rest of the match.) But Ivanov was just too strong on the day. He hit 25 winners, cranked his serve up to 123 mph and saved eight of the nine break points he faced to advance to his second straight Grand Slam junior final.
By contrast, Ivanov’s countryman Alexander Vasilev (who nearly reached the Wimbledon final as well, ultimately losing in the semifinals to American Ronit Karki) faced a tougher task against the in-form, unseeded Luis Guto Miguel, and ultimately fought back from a set down to beat the Brazilian, 2-6, 6-1, 6-0. Miguel came into their encounter riding an eight-match win streak after capturing a title at an ITF junior event in Canada the week prior to the US Open, and he confidently claimed the first set deploying his propulsive forehand from all angles of the court. But in the second and third, Miguel ran out of steam and appeared to be nursing a stomach injury. His first-serve speed dropped from a high of 123 mph in the first to 92 in the third; in the first he also won 22 of the 38 rallies below five shots, but claimed just seven of 28 in Set 3. Credit goes to Vasilev, though, who also adjusted his game plan to make Miguel go for too much. With the win, he guaranteed a Bulgarian victor at the championship on Saturday. He and Ivanov have never met at the ITF junior level.
At the beginning of play on Friday, an all-British girls’ final was also a real possibility, in addition to an all-Bulgarian boys’ showdown. But both No. 2 seed Hannah Klugman and defending champion and No. 9 seed Mika Stojsavljevic lost their semifinal contests—to Belgian Jeline Vandromme and Swedish qualifier Lea Nilsson, respectively.
Nilsson—who noted after her third-round shock of world No. 1 Julieta Pareja that she arrived in New York the same day that she contested her first qualifying match—continued her dream run in Queens, coming back from a bagel in the first set to defeat Stojsavljevic, 0-6, 6-1, 6-1. As the scoreline suggests, Stojsavljevic got off to a blistering start, firing down a 117 mph ace and notching all ten of her first-serve points to take the lead, 6-0. But with a second US Open Grand Slam final in her grasp, she began to falter. In the next two sets, she hit 34 unforced errors, while the ever-consistent Nilsson—who also upset No. 8 seed Charo Esquiva Banuls of Spain in the quarterfinal round—produced just seven (and just one in the third).
In the final Nilsson will meet yet another seed, No. 14 Vandromme, who overcame French Open finalist Klugman, 6-3, 6-2.
This match was closer than the scoreline indicates, particularly in the early stages. Both players hit big, deep shots and moved well, contesting some breathtaking this-is-the-future-of-women’s-tennis rallies throughout. In the first set, seven of the nine games played extended to deuce points. Vandromme just played the big moments that much better, which ultimately made the difference. In the second set, Klugman began to commit more unforced errors, including some ill-timed double faults—one as she was a break point down serving at 2-4.
Vandromme—who every once in a while has a tendency to slide on hard courts like a certain Belgian tennis player and US Open legend, Kim Clijsters—is now vying to become the first girls’ singles champion from her country at Flushing Meadows since Kirsten Flipkens in 2003. There has never been a Swedish girls’ champion in New York. The pair have never met before at the ITF junior level.
For New York fans lamenting the fact that no home favorite reached the last stage of either junior singles event, the boys’ doubles final will feature two All-American teams: No. 6 seeds Jack Kennedy and Keaton Hance will take on No. 7 seeds Noah Johnston and Benjamin Willwerth.
Vandromme will contest two finals on Saturday, as she and partner Laima Vladson of Lithuania—the No. 4 seeds—battle No. 3 seeds and sister duo Alena Kovackova and Jana Kovackova of Czechia to lift the girls’ doubles trophy. Should she win, Vandromme would be the first junior girl to capture both titles since American Robin Montgomery in 2021.
