Sara Saito (斎藤咲良, Saitō Sara, born 3 October 2006) is a Japanese tennis player. She has a career-high WTA singles ranking of world No. 156, achieved on 22 July 2024. She reached her career-high doubles ranking of No. 484 on 18 March 2024.[1]
_01.jpg) Saito at the 2023 French Open | |
| Country (sports) |  Japan |
|---|---|
| Born | 3 October 2006 |
| Plays | Right-handed |
| Prize money | $103,964 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 67–32 |
| Career titles | 0 |
| Highest ranking | No. 156 (22 July 2024) |
| Current ranking | No. 158 (21 October 2024) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| French Open | Q3 (2024) |
| US Open | Q1 (2024) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 9–14 |
| Career titles | 0 |
| Highest ranking | No. 484 (18 March 2024) |
| Current ranking | No. 635 (16 September 2024) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open Junior | F (2023) |
| French Open Junior | F (2023) |
| Wimbledon Junior | QF (2023) |
| US Open Junior | F (2023) |
| Last updated on: 20 October 2024. | |
Career
edit2023: Juniors
editShe has a career-high ITF junior combined ranking of 2, achieved on 29 May 2023.[2] She had a disappointing performance in the singles draw of the 2023 Australian Open, losing in the first round to Australian wildcard Stefani Webb.[3] She reached the final of the doubles with fellow Japanese Hayu Kinoshita, losing to Renáta Jamrichová and Federica Urgesi.[4] She was top seeded in the girls' singles tournament at the 2023 French Open, after winning two titles in South America.[5]
2024: First quarterfinal on WTA Tour debut
editSaito made her WTA Tour main draw debut as a wildcard at the 2024 Japan Women's Open,[6] defeating Jéssica Bouzas Maneiro[7] and fifth seed Elina Avanesyan[8][9] to reach her first WTA Tour quarterfinal, where her run was ended in straight sets by Kimberly Birrell.[10] She entered the WTA 500 2024 Toray Pan Pacific Open as a lucky loser, making her debut at this WTA level but lost to qualifier and compatriot Sayaka Ishii.[11]
Junior Grand Slam finals
editDoubles: 3 (3 runner-ups)
edit| Result | Year | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 2023 | Australian Open | Hard | Hayu Kinoshita
|
 Renáta Jamrichová  Federica Urgesi
|
6–7(5–7), 6–1, [7–10] |
| Loss | 2023 | French Open | Clay |  Alina Korneeva
|
 Tyra Caterina Grant Clervie Ngounoue
|
3–6, 2–6 |
| Loss | 2023 | US Open | Hard | Nanaka Sato
|
Anastasiia Gureva  Mara Gae
|
6–1, 5–7, [8–10] |
ITF Circuit finals
editSingles: 4 (2 titles, 2 runner-ups)
edit
|
|
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1–0 | Oct 2023 | ITF Makinohara, Japan | W25 | Carpet |  Thasaporn Naklo
|
6–4, 6–3 |
| Loss | 1–1 | Jan 2024 | ITF Nonthaburi, Thailand | W50 | Hard |  Antonia Ružić
|
1–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 1–2 | Jan 2024 | Burnie International, Australia |
W75 | Hard |  Priscilla Hon
|
3–6, 0–6 |
| Win | 2–2 | Jun 2024 | Open de Biarritz, France | W100 | Clay |  Margaux Rouvroy
|
5–7, 6–3, 6–3 |
References
edit- ^ "Sara Saito | Player Stats & More – WTA Official". Women's Tennis Association.
- ^ "Sara Saito". International Tennis Federation. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
- ^ "Local girl, 17, arrives on big stage with 'surreal' Aus Open win over No.1 seed". 7NEWS. January 22, 2023.
- ^ "Blockx, Korneeva win Australian Open junior titles". theScore.com. Associated Press. January 28, 2023.
- ^ "Saito, Pacheco Mendez headline juniors draws – Roland-Garros – The 2023 Roland-Garros Tournament official site". www.rolandgarros.com.
- ^ "Photos: Aoi Ito and all of 2024's WTA main-draw debuts". WTATennis. 20 October 2024.
- ^ "On WTA debut, Japanese wild card Saito, 18, upsets Bouzas Maneiro in Osaka". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "Wild card Saito upsets Avanesyan to reach Osaka quarters on WTA debut". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "Japan Open: Fifth seed Avanesyan upset by Saito in second round". Tennis Majors. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "Birrell halts Saito run in Osaka to reach first WTA semifinal". Women's Tennis Association. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "2024 TOKYO; Teenage qualifier Ishii earns first career tour-level win in Tokyo". 22 October 2024.
External links
edit
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