Kaja Juvan (born 25 November 2000) is a Slovenian tennis player who turned professional on 17 October 2016. She has a career-high singles ranking of world No. 58, achieved on 6 June 2022. On 18 July 2022, she peaked at No. 97 in the WTA doubles rankings.
On the junior tour, she achieved a career-high combined ranking of 5, in January 2017. She reached the semifinals of both the 2016 Wimbledon Championships and the 2016 US Open girls' doubles events. She was also a winner of the Orange Bowl in 2016.
Juvan reached the third round of a Grand Slam championship at the 2021 Australian Open as a qualifier for the first time in her career, defeating 13th seed Johanna Konta in the first round, her first top-15 win, and Mayar Sherif in the second round. She lost to eventual Australian Open runner-up and 22nd seed, Jennifer Brady. As a result, she entered the top 100 at a career high of world No. 91, on 22 February 2021.
In June, she also reached the third round at Wimbledon where she defeated ninth seed Belinda Bencic in the first round, her second top-15 win for 2021, and French qualifier Clara Burel in the second round.
On 5 April 2023, Juvan announced that she was taking a break from her tennis career for personal reasons.[5] She took two months off the tour following the death of her father Robert due to cancer. Ranked No. 241, she qualified for her third consecutive main draw at the Wimbledon Championships.[6]
Ranked No. 145, she qualified again at the US Open, saving five match points in the last qualifying round, and reached the third round of the main draw, where she lost to longtime friend Świątek.[7] As a result, she moved close to 40 positions up in the rankings.[8]
Performance timelines
Key
W
F
SF
QF
#R
RR
Q#
P#
DNQ
A
Z#
PO
G
S
B
NMS
NTI
P
NH
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (P#) preliminary round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; (G) gold, (S) silver or (B) bronze Olympic/Paralympic medal; (NMS) not a Masters tournament; (NTI) not a Tier I tournament; (P) postponed; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.
To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated at the conclusion of a tournament or when the player's participation has ended.
^Edition is split into the two years due to COVID-19.
^The first Premier 5 event of the year has switched back and forth between the Dubai Tennis Championships and the Qatar Ladies Open since 2009. Dubai was classified as a Premier 5 event from 2009 to 2011 before being succeeded by Doha for the 2012–2014 period. In 2015, Dubai regained its Premier 5 status while Doha was demoted to Premier status. The Premier 5 tournaments were reclassified as WTA 1000 tournaments in 2021.
^ abDuring the season, she did not play in the main draw of any tour-level tournaments. However, she played at the Billie Jean King Cup, which is not counted as a played tournament but matches counted.
^"For Iga Swiatek and Kaja Juvan, friendship comes first at US Open". Women's Tennis Association. 2 September 2023. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
^Zagoria, Adam (4 July 2019). "Serena Williams Survives 18-Year-Old Qualifier Kaja Juvan, Advances To Third Round At Wimbledon". Forbes. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
^"Tennis, WTA – Wimbledon 2022: Juvan takes out Haddad Maia". 27 June 2022.
^"Beatriz Haddad Maia Upset in Wimbledon Round 1". 27 June 2022.
^Media, Wirtualna Polska (5 April 2023). "Rodzinny dramat przyjaciółki Igi Świątek. Postanowiła zawiesić karierę". sportowefakty.wp.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 5 April 2023.
^"Mirra Andreeva, Kenin, Wickmayer qualify for Wimbledon main draw".
^Chiesa, Victoria (31 August 2023). "Iga Swiatek to face 'best friend' Kaja Juvan at 2023 US Open". US Open. Retrieved 6 November 2023. Grez, Matias (1 September 2023). "Iga Świątek breezes past 'best friend' Kaja Juvan in less than 50 minutes to reach US Open fourth round". CNN. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
^"Rankings Watch: Sabalenka, Gauff-Pegula duo headline historic shakeup".
^"Kaja Juvan [SLO] | Australian Open". ausopen.com.