'I watched Federer at Wimbledon, now I'm here': Pohankova marches on | ITF

'I watched Federer at Wimbledon, now I'm here': Pohankova marches on

Ross McLean

07 Jul 2025

Do not be fooled by the quiet demeanour of Mia Pohankova of Slovakia; she is gutsy and has all the qualities to go far at the 2025 Junior Championships, Wimbledon.

The 16-year-old is one of those players who is always there or thereabouts but at the same time is not, which admittedly is something of a contradiction.

Pohankova has contested seven professional events during her fledgling career dating back to November 2023 when she made her ITF World Tennis Tour debut at W60 Bratislava.

Within those seven events, she lifted silverware at W75 Bratislava in October 2024 aged just 15 to become the youngest ever winner of the tournament, while she has recorded four other quarter-final finishes.

Despite making a powerful start to life within the professional ranks, at junior level there is a sense her time is yet to come, with her having just one junior title to her name and that coming at J100 level in 2023.

This is further evidenced by her having a junior ranking of No. 30 in the world, whereas she is storming along in the WTA Rankings at No. 465, which at the age of 16 is some going. 

However, putting it another way, in cricket batters often get selected on technique rather than their batting average, and there is the sense this applies to Pohankova in a tennis sense. In short, there is a lot to be admired about her game even if that is yet to convert itself into junior titles.

But at only 16, there is huge scope for development and she was in fine form on the grass courts of Wimbledon today as she surged into round three after beating Ksenia Efremova of France, 6-3 7-6(5).

This built impressively upon her first-round defeat of Great Britain’s Mika Stojsavljevic, who has prior experience of Junior Grand Slam glory having won the girls’ singles title at last year’s US Open. Her winning start here has evoked memories of her tennis idols growing up.

“I remember watching Wimbledon growing up in Slovakia, watching so many Roger Federer matches and that unbelievable final he played against Novak Djokovic in 2019,” Pohankova told itftennis.com. “Tennis on grass is so pretty.

“Remembering watching those matches and now stepping out on the grass here just as they did is pretty cool. I just keep saying to myself that when Federer and Djokovic were young, they played on the same courts I am now playing on.

“It is so cool here and so pretty. The grass is so soft and I love it when I am running on the grass – it is so nice. I like it and enjoy it very much. I am enjoying it more this year than last, and I have already done better than I did 12 months ago.

“Today, I knew that Ksenia was going to play good tennis, play good rallies and not miss the ball, so it was a tough match for me. I needed to play with accuracy and make very few mistakes – and I did this and I am happy.”

Pohankova, who has already made her Billie Jean King Cup debut for Slovakia, may well have to be at her best once again in round three as she faces Brazil’s Nauhany Vitoria Leme da Silva. The 15-year-old posted an impressive victory against Czechia’s Jana Kovackova in round two.

Game on!

A full list of results from the 2025 Junior Championships, Wimbledon can be viewed here. 

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