This is Tyra Grant, the great promise of Italian women's tennis

Andrés Tomás Rico | 12 Jun 2025 | 18.34

This is Tyra Grant, great promise of Italian women's tennis. Photo: Getty Images

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While Italian tennis is rubbing its hands and enjoying the present with Jannik Sinner, Lorenzo Musetti, and Jasmine Paolini, there is a figure slowly emerging that the Italian federation has fought to acquire. This is Tyra Grant, a 17-year-old player, daughter of former NBA player, Tyrone Grant, who holds both Italian and American nationalities and decided to play for Italy just before receiving a Wildcard for the WTA in Rome.

Her appearance at the Roman tournament was her first in a significant event on the women's circuit, even though she fell to Antonia Ruzic in the first round. "Regardless of the result, it was a precious experience that I will undoubtedly remember for a lifetime. They were two precious weeks; I don't think there could have been a better tournament to receive the welcome of the Italian Federation. It was my first tournament as an Italian, and I didn't know what to expect, but the audience was great. I had the opportunity to play on Center Court, but I didn't expect it. When they asked me where I wanted to debut, I said on Center Court, and in the end, they assigned me there. A precious anecdote that I will always remember," the Italian says in an interview with Ubitennis.

From the WTA in Rome to the ITF75 in Caserna

Her ranking, 308th in the WTA ranking, forced her, after the dream of playing with the best in the world, to return to the reality of the ITF circuit and move from Rome to an ITF75 in Caserna: "It's definitely not easy, in fact, it's strange. Going from an ITF75 to a WTA1000, and then to an ITF75 again. That's how it is because I have to build my own ranking. Rome was a magnificent opportunity they gave me, but it's normal to have to go through these tournaments to reach them. Just as I moved from the junior circuit, it's correct to move from the 15 thousand, then to the 50, and so on. It's normal to stay a little longer in these tournaments because it's a level where the top 200 in the ranking begin to appear," Grant points out.

In addition to focusing on her singles career, she also tends to participate in doubles and expresses her excitement to play with a compatriot: "My goal is to continue with doubles as well, as has been demonstrated recently, like Paolini, Andreeva, Pegula, or even Coco Gauff, both can easily be done. In the juniors, I played all the tournaments in both singles and doubles, even though it was also for the points to count together, but I always say that doubles helped me a lot in singles too, for example in the return or the solidity from the baseline. Paolini also said so if I'm not mistaken. Certainly, I would love to play, as an Italian, with Jasmine; it would be great to play with her someday.

Although she also reveals another dream, to play the Billie Jean King with Italy: "Certainly, it would be a dream to be called up. I have already represented the country; when I played with the United States, they called me a couple of times in the Junior events, but playing with Italy would be wonderful; being called up to the professional Billie Jean King Cup would be incredible."

Grant, despite her close ties to the United States, always had the clear intention of wanting to defend the colors of the 'azzurra': "I always had the idea of changing sooner or later, except for a year, I always lived here, always been here, and always surrounded by Italian coaches. The federation has supported me a lot; they were very happy to have me and they follow me a lot. I couldn't ask for more from the federation."

It's important to note that Grant is only 17 years old, but she already knows the pressure that is put on young promises: "There has always been pressure in this sport, even if you don't play at a high level. I think I handle it quite well; also, I try to see the positive side of pressure, which drives me to try to reach my goals as soon as possible and achieve them first, but they are still pleasant."

Finally, the Italian has a clear idea of who her role model is: "Djokovic is definitely my favorite; I draw a lot of inspiration from him, even though we don't have a similar playing style. Many do not like him for various reasons, but he has always been my reference point. In the women's world, I don't know, it's a difficult question, because I think I have a quite particular playing style, so right now, I can't think of any player," Grant says, who has already introduced herself to her audience in Rome but is aware of the long road ahead.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Así es Tyra Grant, la gran promesa del tenis italiano femenino