Last year’s US Open final featured two teenagers for the first time since the 1999 US Open — where a 17-year-old Serena Williams won her first major title against an 18-year-old Martina Hingis.

At the 2021 Grand Slam, unseeded 18-year-old Emma Raducanu beat out unseeded 19-year-old Leylah Fernandez for her own inaugural major title.

In total, teenagers have won 11 US Open women’s singles titles during the Open era, dating back to 16-year-old Tracy Austin’s win at Flushing Meadows in 1979.

As Williams prepares for her final US Open and Raducanu prepares for her title defense, Just Women’s Sports takes a look at five teenagers who could make waves at this year’s tournament.

Coco Gauff

While Raducanu and Fernandez are both 19 as the tournament begins, the obvious choices will not be included on our list. But nestled between No. 11 Raducanu and No. 14 Fernandez in the world rankings sits No. 12 Coco Gauff.

In June, the same month in which she graduated from high school, the American made – and subsequently lost – her first Grand Slam final at the French Open. Still, the loss showed that the 18-year-old is ready to step onto the sport’s biggest stages.

Since then, she’s rocketed to No. 1 in the doubles world rankings, and she is oh so close on the singles side.

She represents the leading edge of the next generation of American tennis, a heavy burden to bear with Williams’ retirement approaching. Still, Gauff has taken the pressure in stride.

And if Gauff is truly the next American superstar, then it would be all too fitting for her first major to come at the US Open that is to be the final chapter for one of the game’s all-time-greats.

Gauff’s health could be a question mark, as she had to pull out of the Cincinnati Open after rolling her ankle in the first round, but she has described the injury as “really minor.”

Qinwen Zheng

Ranked at a career-high No. 41, 19-year old Qinwen Zheng is another player who has the talent to make a deep run.

Zheng turned heads at the French Open in May. In her fourth-round match, she won a set in a tiebreak against world No. 1 Iga Swiatek, who was in the midst of her 37-match win streak. In a show of Swiatek’s dominance but also Zheng’s ability, the set was the only one Swiatek dropped en route to the title at Roland Garros.

The Chinese teen followed that up with a win against 2018 US Open champion Sloane Stephens at Wimbledon. Zheng made it to the third round before losing to eventual champion Elena Rybakina.

In her most recent tournament, she became the first Chinese player to advance to the quarterfinals at the Canadian Open since Na Li in 2013. While No. 1 seed Ons Jabeur had to retire in their second-round match, Zheng took the first set of that match 6-1. She backed up that walkover with a win over Bianca Andreescu before falling in three sets to Karolina Pliskova.

What a finish! #NBO22

19-year-old Qinwen Zheng takes down Canada's own Andreescu 7-5 5-7 6-2 to reach the Quarterfinals! Faces Pliskova next. pic.twitter.com/YWSU3V6X78

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) August 12, 2022

Clara Tauson

At 19 years old, Clara Tauson of Denmark has made a splash. The youngest Danish champion since Caroline Wozniacki, she turned pro in 2019.

While she currently sits 58th in the world, Tauson has risen as high as 33rd. She won 42 matches in her breakout 2021 season.

Her best major finish so far came at the Australian Open in January, as she upset sixth-seeded Anett Kontaveit in the second round before falling to Danielle Collins in the third.

A month later, she made her WTA 1000 main draw debut in Qatar, where she beat Olympic champion Belinda Bencic in straight sets before losing to third-seeded Paula Badosa. And a month after that, at Indian Wells, she advanced to the third round before losing in three sets to eventual champion Swiatek during her streak.

Tauson has dealt with back injuries since then, however, having to withdraw from the Italian Open and Wimbledon. At the Cincinnati Open she was ousted in the first qualifying round by Ajla Tomlajanovic in straight sets, but she bested Harmony Tan in the round of 32 at Tennis in the Land.

Diane Parry

Diane Parry has had a career year, reaching the third round at both the French Open and Wimbledon. Ranked at a career-high No. 76, the 18-year-old is coming off a loss in the Cincinnati qualifiers – but it came in three sets against eventual champion Caroline Garcia.

Parry is one of just two players in the top 100 to play with a single-handed backhand, but she uses the relatively rare shot to her advantage.

She made an impression at Roland Garros, knocking off defending champion Barbora Krejcikova in three sets in the first round. At the same tournament in 2019, a 16-year-old Parry became the youngest woman to win a main-draw match at the major since 2009.

At Wimbledon, she beat former world No. 15 Kaia Kanepi in straight sets before losing to third-seeded Ons Jabeur in the third round.

🇫🇷 Teenage Dream 🇫🇷

19-year-old Diane Parry dethrones defending champion Krejcikova 1-6, 6-2, 6-3 to become the lowest-ranked woman to beat the No.2 seed in Paris since No.114 Rus upset Clijsters in 2011#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/WcGUtJYoiW

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 23, 2022

Linda Nosková

In the first round at the French Open in May, Nosková lost to Raducanu in three sets after taking the first in a tiebreak. The loss came after the 17-year-old made her way through qualifiers as the reigning junior 2021 Roland Garros champion, becoming the youngest qualifier at the major in 13 years.

Nosková has been more active on the lower-tier ITF tour this year, winning in Germany and France and making the semifinals of tournaments in Kazakhstan and Spain. But her two WTA events this year, Nosková made it to the semifinals.

In Prague, she beat Alizé Cornet in the fourth round before losing to Marie Bouzkova in the semis, while at the Makarska Open in Croatia she had an easy time reaching the semifinals before falling to Jule Niemeier.

With those runs, the world No. 88 became just the second player born after 2004 to make a WTA semifinal, joining Gauff.

Into her first career Tour-level quarterfinal 👏

🇨🇿 Linda Noskova defeats Cornet to reach the last eight in Prague!#PragueOpen pic.twitter.com/4HYlIXlJ3v

— wta (@WTA) July 28, 2022

Indiana Fever center Aliyah Boston knows what it's like to stick out in a crowd. Growing up on St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands, she often played with boys to keep up her game — both a welcome challenge and an isolating experience.

"It was mostly just guys that I was around, and that's who my competition was," Boston told JWS last month. "It was always rough playing against guys, trying to score on them. Because they don't want a girl to score on them."

All that changed when she moved to the US at the age of 12, intent on making basketball her career.

"That was definitely a difference for me until I moved to the States," she said. "I was like, 'Okay, so this is what it's like to be around girls in general.'"

Fast-forward to 2026, and Boston still sticks out in a crowd — for all the right reasons. Drafted No. 1 overall eight days after winning a national championship with South Carolina, the Fever recruit was named 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year. She quickly became a cornerstone for Indiana as they pushed through an onslaught of injuries to reach the 2025 semifinals.

But the 24-year-old still remembers what it was like to be the only girl at practice. It's an issue she's tackling alongside Lilly and the YMCA of Greater Indianapolis via The Court is Hers, an initiative dedicated to creating more opportunities for girls in basketball.

"Young girls are finally seeing that this is not just a boy's world, and that they do have role models to look up to," Boston said of the partnership. "They do have the ability to be great in whatever they want to be great in, whatever the goals they set."

Stepping into a leadership role on and off the WNBA court

Boston takes being a role model seriously. And she's becoming better at handling the daily routines of a professional athlete every passing year. After a two-week reset following the end of the 2025 WNBA season, she got back in the gym. She was laser-focused on gearing up for Team USA camp in December — and her second season with Unrivaled 3×3 Basketball.

She doesn't see herself as a veteran just yet, though the mantle might be thrust upon her faster than anticipated. Young frontcourt players are already citing Boston as an inspiration, someone they can learn from as they develop their own styles.

"Obviously, she's younger, but I've always grown up watching her. I loved her at South Carolina," UCLA center Lauren Betts said from Team USA camp. "She's just someone that we idolize. So being able to learn from her and have those conversations has been really cool. I actually spoke to her about some tips that I could use moving forward for my team."

Tipping off her fourth year in the pros, Boston laughs off the idea of being an idol. But she values her impetus to continue to progress as a player. "It's weird to think of myself as kind of a vet," she said. "But I think as time continues to go on, I get a lot more comfortable being in that space and knowing exactly what I need to do."

With that comfort comes greater responsibility, and Boston's goals align with her growth. She wants to win a WNBA championship and represent Team USA at the 2028 Olympics. And it's not just the next generation singing her praises. Boston has gained the attention of decision-makers at the highest levels, including the person who could control her Olympic destiny.

"Aliyah Boston looks great right now. She looked great in USA camp," USA Basketball managing director — and WNBA legend — Sue Bird recently said on Bird's Eye View. "She's now really found her game, [and] just has a confidence about, 'This is what I do, and I'm gonna be great at these things,' and one of those things is playmaking."

How Unrivaled and Team USA are elevating Aliyah Boston's game

Boston says she's excited for the upcoming WNBA season, even if CBA negotiations have thrown things into limbo. Right now, however, she's looking to get the most out of her time at Unrivaled. The Phantom phenom has been an aggressive early-season defender, topping the league in both rebounds and blocks per game. And she's especially eager to bring back lessons learned on the offensive side of the court.

"It allows you to be more confident in your game, in the way you are able to attack," she said of the 3×3 format. "You get to five-on-five and feel like, 'Okay, I've been doing this for a few months now, I'm very confident in what I'm capable of.'"

Beyond showcasing personality and confidence, Unrivaled also allows players to cultivate versatility, vision, and mobility — especially in the frontcourt. Boston has approached this season with gusto, and people are already noticing.

"If you can have a post player in three-on-three who can play-make… that's going to be so helpful to the Plums, the Tiff Hayes, the Dana Evans,” Bird said of Boston's Phantom BC impact.

That backcourt chemistry should benefit Indiana next season, when Boston links back up with a healthy Caitlin Clark.

Inside Aliyah Boston's vision for Indiana — and the next generation

After taking the Aces to a hard-fought five-game semifinal series in 2025, Boston can't wait for the Fever to return to play. If they can avoid injury, she thinks the Fever could well be in the title contender conversation once again.

"There's no limit for us," said Boston. "Everyone that we're able to sign and have on the squad next year should know the type of vibe that we're on. That we want to win, that we continue to pour in and play our best basketball for each other."

In addition to the normal athlete goals — win, bond with teammates, play well — Boston is driven by her community connections. "They've really poured into us since I've been there, and it's honestly been so amazing," she said. "You walk down the street and people are like, 'Oh my gosh, can we get a picture?' They're everywhere."

Their support made partnering with The Court Is Hers a no-brainer for Boston. She wants girls in Indianapolis to get the same fulfillment from sports that she did — if not more. "Growing up, it would have been amazing to have someone like me, to be able to meet someone like [me] and continue to go to games," she said.

For Boston, the future is bright. Key to the Fever's title dreams, she's focused on giving girls near and far a renewed sense of what they can accomplish.

"Having young girls be able to be in that space, to talk about their dreams and their goals, what they want to do, is so important," she added. "Not only in sport, but just active and excited about the future."

The PWHL is continuing to break records, as Sunday's 2025/26 Takeover Tour stop in Washington, DC, saw 17,228 fans pack into Capital One Arena to see the No. 2 New York Sirens top the No. 4 Montréal Victoire 2-1 — setting a new US women's hockey attendance record in the process.

The benchmark surpasses the previous US record set this past November, when the Seattle Torrent welcomed 16,014 fans to their inaugural home opener.

Sunday's DC crowd also sees the US mark inch closer to the overall professional women's hockey attendance record, set in April 2024 when 21,105 PWHL fans sold out Montréal's Bell Centre to watch the Victoire take on the Toronto Sceptres.

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"Washington, DC, showed up in such a big way, and the energy our fans brought into the arena turned this game into something truly special," PWHL EVP of business operations Amy Scheer said of the first-ever PWHL game in the nation's capital. "Moments like this capture the joy of our sport and the momentum behind the league."

The third-year league is currently racing through its best-attended month on record, drawing more than 154,000 fans across the last 16 games while averaging crowds of 8,726 across all 49 games so far this season.

The Kansas City Current delivered some concerning news this week, with the NWSL club revealing that star striker Temwa Chawinga remains sidelined with an hip adductor injury while the league's 2026 preseason gets underway.

The team currently lists the reigning back-to-back NWSL MVP under a season-ending injury (SEI) designation, a category earned after Chawinga picked up the injury in mid-October, leaving the Kansas City attacker benched for the Current's quarterfinal loss to eventual 2025 NWSL champions Gotham FC.

"It's hard because of the nature of the injury," incoming Kansas City head coach Chris Armas told The Athletic last week. "With Temwa, we've got to be very careful, but she's looking great and doing lots of good work on the return to play."

Also on the Current's SEI list is standout winger Michelle Cooper, with the 23-year-old rising USWNT star suffering a foot injury in Kansas City's final regular-season match of 2025.

"It was a little bit of a tough ending here after, honestly, an amazing historic season," said Armas. "Hopefully they are back as soon as possible, but it's still unclear."

Both Chawinga and Cooper will have some time to recover before Kansas City kicks off their 2026 NWSL regular season against the Utah Royals on March 14th — with teams allowed to lift a player's SEI status any time once the season begins.

The world's top tennis stars are rolling in Melbourne, as the first round of the 2026 Australian Open wrapped early Tuesday morning with only a few ranked seeds suffering early defeats.

World No. 15 Emma Navarro was the highest-ranked US player to fall in the first round, with the 24-year-old exiting the season's first Grand Slam in a 6-3, 3-6, 3-6 loss to Poland's No. 50 Magda Linette on Sunday.

No. 11 Ekaterina Alexandrova also stumbled in the first round, with her Melbourne run ending in a three-set loss to Turkey's No. 112 Zeynep Sönmez on Saturday before No. 68 Peyton Stearns ousted fellow US star and 2020 Australian Open champion No. 30 Sofia Kenin in straight sets on Sunday.

Many contenders still remain in the hunt, however, as the entire WTA Top 10 cruised through their opening matchups to advance to the Slam's second round.

That said, fans will miss out on one highly anticipated showdown, as wild card entry Venus Williams's first-round loss ended the 45-year-old tennis icon's path to a second-round clash with US favorite No. 3 Coco Gauff.

How to watch the second round of the 2026 Australian Open

The 2026 Australian Open continues when the Slam's second round kicks off with a Tuesday night slate that features stars like No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, No. 3 Coco Gauff, and No. 7 Jasmine Paolini.

Tuesday's action begins at 7 PM ET, with all Melbourne matches airing live across ESPN platforms.