England youngsters reach late stages at WTT Youth Contender Tunis

English junior players turned heads across two stops on the WTT Youth Contender circuit, with notable progress at Tunis and solid performances at Linz that underline growing depth in the national junior ranks.

At Tunis, Max Radiven was a standout, advancing to the semi-finals in his age categories and showing promise in doubles. “English juniors had strong showings at WTT Youth Contender Tunis (event coverage posted Feb 3, 2026). Max Radiven reached the semi-finals in his age categories and made a run in the Under-19 Mixed Doubles (with Yu Zheng Cheah of Malaysia), while Dimitar Dimitrov re” The fragment above captures the headline facts from the Tunis coverage, including Radiven’s partnership with Yu Zheng Cheah of Malaysia in Under-19 mixed doubles.

Across the Alps in Linz, five young English talents were named to the entry list for the first European WTT Youth Contender of the year. “Five young English talents are joined by athletes from Jersey and Scotland at the first European WTT Youth Contender of the year in Linz starting tomorrow.” The English contingent included brothers Kacper and Jakub Piwowar, Abraham Sellado, Ella Pashley and Dimitar Dimitrov, with Kacper and Jakub arriving “fresh from tasting victory at the Cliffedale Chandlers 4 at the weekend.”

Dimitar Dimitrov produced one of the clearest single-event runs in Linz. “Dimitar Dimitrov reached the quarter-finals of the Under-13 Boys’ Singles at the WTT Youth Contender Linz in Austria.” Seeded third, Dimitrov topped his group as reported: “Seeded third, Dimitrov topped his group with a maximum of four wins, though one was a walkover, and did not drop a game.” He then bowed out in the quarter-finals to Kirill Manalaki of Germany: “He faced fifth seed Kirill Manalaki of Germany in the quarter-finals but was defeated in four (9-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-8).”

Kacper Piwowar reinforced his seeding and recent form in Under-17 qualifying, recording wins over Seung Chen (AUT) and Simon Zsigmond (HUN) with the following results: “Under-17 Boys’ Singles Qualifying group 7 Kacper Piwowar bt Seung Chen (AUT) 3-1 (8-11, 11-4, 11-0, 11-4) Piwowar bt Simon Zsigmond (HUN) 3-0 (12-10, 11-5, 11-9).” Kacper is listed as the seventh seed in the under-17 draw, while teammate Abraham Sellado is 12th seed.

Jakub Piwowar found tougher opposition in Under-19 qualifying, with two recorded defeats: “Under-19 Boys’ Singles Qualifying group 20 Uros Ninkovic (SRB) bt Jakub Piwowar 3-2 (13-11, 8-11, 3-11, 11-4, 13-11) Lukas Wang (GER) bt Piwowar 3-0 (14-12, 11-7, 11-8).” Ella Pashley advanced from qualifying into the main draw and reached the round of 32 before being stopped by Lisa Wang of Germany: “Under-19 Girls’ Singles Qualifying group 3 Maria Berzosa (ESP) bt Ella Pashley 3-0 (11-5, 11-9, 11-3) Pashley bt Vivien Tamas (ROU) 3-0 (12-10, 11-7, 11-8) Round of 64 Pashley bt Andreea Baiasu (ROU) 3-1 (11-6, 13-11, 7-11, 12-10) Round of 32 Lisa Wang (GER) bt Pashley 3-0 (11-4, 11-7, 11-7).”

Mixed doubles also offered highlights. “In the Mixed, Silcock, playing alongside Jacopo Cipriano of Italy, made it into the last 32 with a win over a Slovenia pair, before going out to 10th seeds Mark Gergely & Judit Nagy of Hungary.” The mixed run provides valuable international match experience for the pairing and adds to the tally of competitive matches logged by England’s juniors.

For club players, coaches and local clubs tracking the pipeline, these results confirm momentum. Success at domestic events such as Cliffedale Chandlers 4 appears to be translating into competitive showings on the WTT Youth Contender stage, and seeds are being justified with match wins and main-draw appearances. Expect to see these names pushed into selection conversations for upcoming junior internationals and national age-group fixtures as the season progresses.