Townsend Returns To Junior Competition At The French Open

Written by: Bob Larson Tennis on 14th May 2013

Townsend Returns To Junior Competition At The French Open

epa03617242 Taylor Townsend of USA returns a shot to Ana Ivanovic of Serbia during their match at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament in Indian Wells, California, USA, 09 March 2013. Ivanovic won the match. EPA/PAUL BUCK |

Taylor Townsend, 17, the No. 1-ranked junior in the world at the end of 2012, will play in her first junior event of 2013 at the Roland Garros French Open Junior Championships June 2-8 in Paris.

Townsend finished last year as the No. 1-ranked junior in the world, becoming the first American girl in 30 years to hold that distinction. She remains No. 10 in the ITF world junior rankings despite thus far having played only professional tournaments in 2013. In her first WTA-level main draw match, Townsend beat then-No. 57 Lucie Hradecka in the first round of the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells in March.

Townsend, who in 2012 won the Australian Open junior singles title and junior doubles titles at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open, headlines an American girls’ contingent accepted to play in the French Open Junior Championship.