Jensi Kanabar made history on Friday by becoming the first Indian female to win the Australian Open U14 title. The 14-year-old produced a comeback in the final, defeating Australia’s Musemma Cilek 3-6, 6-4, 6-1.

Trailing 3-6, 0-2, Kanabar showed composure and mental strength to turn the match around, overcoming a physically imposing opponent and a home crowd backing the local favourite.

Kanabar’s campaign at the 2026 Australian Open Asia-Pacific Elite 14 & Under Trophy was dominant from the outset. She sailed through the round-robin stage at Melbourne Park, winning all her matches in straight sets to top Group A with a perfect 3-0 record.

Her run began with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Nepal’s Shivali Gurung, followed by a 7-5, 6-4 win against China’s Jinyu Zhou, before she wrapped up the group stage with a 6-0, 6-1 triumph over New Zealand’s Jocelyn Ke.

In the semi-final against Japan’s Aoi Yoshida, Kanabar edged a tight first-set tiebreak 7-6(3) before closing out the match 6-2 to reach the final.

The Asia-Pacific Elite 14 & Under Trophy, inaugurated in 2020 as a collaboration between the Asian Tennis Federation and Tennis Australia, was paused during the Covid-19 pandemic before resuming in 2023.

After Arnav Paparkar became the first Indian to win the boys’ title in 2024, Kanabar has now become the tournament’s first Indian female champion, highlighting India’s growing presence in international junior tennis.

Hailing from Junagadh, Gujarat, she began training at a young age and has shown steady progression through the junior circuit.

She reached the No.1 position in the All India Tennis Association (AITA) Girls Under-14 and Under-16 categories, and by early 2026 had also entered the AITA Women’s Singles rankings, an achievement at her age.

In September 2025, Kanabar won the GSPDP Asian Under-14 Junior Championship in Manila, defeating second seed Lim Yerin of South Korea in the final and earning qualification for major junior events in the United States.

She also won the ITF J30 Ahmedabad singles title on her junior debut and continued her domestic success by claiming the Girls’ Under-14 title at the Fenesta Open National Tennis Championship.

At 14, Kanabar made her ITF Women’s circuit debut, qualifying for the main draw of a W15 tournament with a series of straight-set victories.