Willwerth and Paldanius: a tale of two unexpected semi-finalists

Benjamin Willwerth is from Jupiter, Florida, just north of Palm Beach and Miami. His dad works for sports manufacturer Wilson and has met Roger Federer this way. Dad is a big Fed fan and has passed this appreciation onto Benjamin who uses the same racket as the great man.

There is little public info on Willwerth out there but, after moving into the Australian Open boys’ semi-final, he was very happy to help fill in the gaps. He is excellent value.

“My parents played tennis, not to a crazy high level, but they played and I started when I was young,” he said, who recorded his first Junior Grand Slam match-win this week.

“My elder brother (Finn) was a big help. I was always playing with him and that pushed me to keep playing. I played a lot of Florida tournaments and then at 14 I started playing internationally more.”

This is his first ever trip to Australia but unlike the bulk of his competitors, he came alone. Settling in has been straightforward.

“I love it so far,” he added. “The (Pullman) hotel is super nice and they (AO organisers) treat the players here well. With the quarter-finals they’ve moved us to the pro locker rooms.

“We used to be in the NTC (National Tennis Centre) but now it’s here which is really cool. Our lockers are right next to Sinner and Alcaraz.”

He has managed to watch Sinner train at the NTC this week. His timing is “crazy” good, concluded the 17-year-old.

After beating Timofei Derepasko 6-4 6-4 on an unusually cloudy and chilly Melbourne morning, Willwerth will face another American, Jagger Leach, in the last four on Friday.

“I’ve known him [Leach] for a while now, for years,” said Willwerth. “I’ve played him in doubles, but never in singles.”

Friday’s other semi-final will between Switzerland’s Henry Bernet, who put out No. 1 seed Jan Kumstat 7-6(4) 7-6(2) on Thursday afternoon, and Finland’s Oskari Paldanius.

Like Willwerth, this is Paldanius’s first visit to Australia also and only his second Junior Grand Slam main draw (he won one match in the US Open Junior Championships last year).

“I didn’t expect to play in the semi-finals,” he said. “My goal was to play the quarter-finals – it’s fantastic.

“Melbourne is really nice, we don’t these big buildings in Helsinki. In Finland, at this time of year, we have snow. It’s raining and dark, so it’s pretty nice here.”

As with Willwerth, his public bio is limited, but he is keen to assist.

“I was born in Germany, my parents are fully Finnish and they were working there at this time. We lived there one year,” he said. 

Unsurprisingly, given his time there, his German is limited. “I speak just a bit,” he said.

“I am 17 years old, I train fully in Helsinki and I am pretty tall, 186cm. I’m studying. The Finnish school system is pretty slow, we start school at seven years old, so pretty late but it’s ok because I can then play juniors and start professional tournaments and don’t need to rush into college.”

He’s in Melbourne with the Grand Slam Player Development Programme/ITF Touring Team.

For those unaware of the Touring Team, groups of talented players from developing tennis nations are each year selected to join Grand Slam Player Development Programme (GSPDP)/ ITF Touring Teams. 

The players travel as part of a team on carefully crafted tours during which they have access to high-performance coaches and are exposed to events outside of their region.

Without the Touring Team programme, which is financed through the Grand Slam Player Development Programme and operated by the ITF, these players would unlikely be able to compete at such a level. 

The Grand Slam Player Development Programme has contributed more than $60 million to global tennis development since its inception in 1986.   

When Paldanius sealed victory against Jack Kennedy of the United States in today’s last eight match, he shook hands politely before letting rip with both fists clenched.

This is very much the tale of two unexpected, but thoroughly deserved, Australian Open semi-finalists. 

A full list of results from the 2025 Australian Open Junior Championships is available here