Junior No. 1 Schwaerzler joins Kyrgios, Fritz in Challenger history

#NextGenATP Joel Schwaerzler entered the record books at the Macedonian Open, where he became just the fourth player to win an ATP Challenger Tour title while holding the Junior No. 1 ranking.

Competing in just his fifth event at the Challenger level, the 18-year-old Austrian defeated Pole Kamil Majchrzak 6-3, 6-3 in Saturday’s final. Schwaerzler is the first player to win a Challenger title as the current Junior No. 1 since Wu Yibing in 2017. World No. 12 Taylor Fritz (2015) and 2022 Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios (2013) also completed the feat.

Following his triumph in Skopje, Schwaerzler jumped 277 spots to a career-high No. 387 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

Schwaerzler, who is coached by countryman and former World No. 8 Jurgen Melzer, is the fourth-youngest Austrian winner in Challenger history and the youngest since the late Horst Skoff in 1986.

^{Joel Schwaerzler in action during the Skopje Challenger final. Credit: Macedonian Open}

A finalist at last year’s US Open boys’ doubles event, Schwaerzler is seventh in the PIF ATP Live Race To Jeddah. He is aiming for his maiden trip to the Next Gen ATP Finals presented by PIF, to be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from 18-22 December.

In other ATP Challenger action, Frenchman Robin Bertrand also enjoyed a title run despite a lack of experience at that level. The 21-year-old was crowned champion at the Kachreti Challenger in Georgia, where he beat home hope Aleksandre Bakshi 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 in the final. Bertrand, who is up to a career-high No. 303, entered the week with an 0-3 Challenger-match record.

^{Robin Bertrand wins the Challenger 50 event in Kachreti, Georgia. Credit: Kachreti Challenger}

Kazakh Timofey Skatov earned his second Challenger title and first since October 2022 by triumphing at the Schwaben Open in Augsburg, Germany. The 23-year-old rallied from a set down in the final, overcoming Elmer Moller 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 after two hours and 37 minutes.

“It feels really nice to be unbeatable for one week per year,” Skatov said. “I hope I get more this year. This tournament I was first seeded, it was a little bit of pressure. I knew I could do it and in the end I got the result.”

^{Timofey Skatov wins his second ATP Challenger Tour title in Augsburg, Germany. Credit: Schwaben Open}