The Piedmont native comes from behind to defeat Bolivar Idarraga and advances to the round of 16 of the junior Grand Slam, where he’ll face Hance. He’s also in the running in doubles with Gribaldo
As we look forward to a dream Wednesday at the Australian Open, with Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti set to play in the quarterfinals, the Italian flag is flying high in the junior tournament as well, thanks to Simone Massellani. With his second-round victory—a comeback win of 2-6, 6-2, 6-3 over Colombia’s Juan Miguel Bolivar Idarraga—the Italian secured his spot in the round of 16. He arrives on the back of two convincing performances, including a strong first-round victory over Puerto Rico’s Yannik Alvarez, the No. 16 seed, by a score of 6-0, 6-3. He will face Keaton Hance for a spot in the quarterfinals between Wednesday, January 28, and Thursday, January 29. The American, currently ranked No. 1,216 in the ATP rankings, is the fourth seed in the draw.
Massellani is currently No. 2 in Italy at the junior level, ranked 35th, behind Matteo Gribaldo in 28th place. A native of Piedmont, in 2024 he climbed over 2,000 spots in the ITF rankings, breaking into the top 400, with further improvements in 2025. He turned 18 on January 12, a few days before his Grand Slam debut. In 2025, Simone won the J200 clay-court tournament in Belgrade, adding to his three titles from 2024. A native of Caramagna Piemonte, in the province of Cuneo, he is bringing honor to Italian junior tennis in Australia, both in singles and doubles. A player whose backhand is more solid than his forehand, he will actually return to the court as early as tonight, between Wednesday the 28th and Thursday the 29th, alongside Matteo Gribaldo.
Doubles— – The Italian duo, both born in 2008, will face the Americans Hance (curiously, also Massellani’s opponent in singles) and Konduri, the No. 4 seeds. The match, a round of 16 contest, will take place at 1:30 a.m. Gribaldo, after losing in the second round of singles but with the satisfaction of having trained alongside Lorenzo Musetti, benefited from his chemistry with his friend Massellani to defeat Chlodnicki/Tazabekov 7-6, 6-4 in their opening match. Simone now has a golden opportunity to advance simultaneously in both draws during his first experience at this level. Moreover, should he defeat Hance in singles, he would become the first Italian to reach the quarterfinals of the Australian Open Juniors since 2019, when Lorenzo Musetti won the title by defeating Nava in the final and Zeppieri in the semifinals.
