Janice Tjen has made history in tennis by achieving the first singles victory for an Indonesian player in a Grand Slam tournament in 22 years. This achievement propels her to the second round, where she will face a US Open champion who has been one of her inspirations: Emma Raducanu. Tjen managed to overcome the number 24 seed, Veronika Kudermetova, with a score of 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 in a match that lasted 2 hours and 11 minutes. Now, she prepares to face the winner of the 2021 US Open, who reached the top after overcoming the qualifying rounds at Flushing Meadows. The 23-year-old tennis player earned her place in the tournament, becoming the first Indonesian player to participate in singles in a major tournament since Angelique Widjaja at the 2004 US Open. Widjaja was also the last Indonesian player to win a match at a Grand Slam, achieving this feat at Wimbledon in 2003.
Tjen played college tennis in Oregon and finished her career at Pepperdine, where she was the NCAA doubles runner-up in 2024. After graduating last spring with a degree in sociology, she considered the possibility of playing professionally.When Emma won the tournament and had an incredible run here, I was in college and injured at the time, so I was able to watch a lot of tennis. Seeing her do it inspires me to want to do it too.
Janice Tjen
This year, Tjen came to the tournament with a record of 55-10, competing in lower-level matches. Between May and July, he won 27 consecutive ITF matches, a streak that included five titles. Tjen recovered after losing a 3-1 lead in the second set on Sunday, finishing the match with a backhand volley on match point and falling to his knees near the net. Her victory came on the same day that Alexandra Eala became the first player to represent the Philippines to win a Grand Slam match, defeating the 14th seed, Clara Tauson, with a score of 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (13-11).I think during my college years I was always contemplating whether I should try it or not. In the end I decided to try and the Pepperdine coaches told me: “I think you should try it, at least for two years”. So I trusted them, and here I am.
Janice Tjen
Tjen will have another opportunity, and probably in a much bigger scenario against the popular Raducanu, in the next round.Growing up in the same region, we met a lot in the same tournaments. I haven’t been able to spend much time with her recently. I know she was in college. Now she’s playing professionally and doing very well. I’m very happy for her, and it’s nice to see someone you grew up with on the biggest stages in the world.
Alexandra Eala
It’s going to be… well, my first thought is that there will be a big crowd, I would say, a bigger crowd playing against her. She’s a well-known player, and I’m excited for the opportunity.
Janice Tjen
