This time, I joined the ITF Junior tournament with the support of Team Macy, a group that guides and travels with junior players competing on the ITF circuit.

Because the team was moving together from a previous tournament location, I first stayed in Thailand to meet up with everyone. After practicing there for about two days, we headed to the Maldives. Thailand was even more humid and sticky than Japan, while the Maldives felt a little better in comparison.

Unfortunately, my body didn’t fully adjust to the intense summer heat this year, and I couldn’t bring out my best performance in the singles matches.
Still, the doubles that followed were a completely different story — I played with a friend I often train with at the Rafa Nadal Academy, and we had a really fun and competitive match together.