Kazakhstan adds another name to tennis’ global elite
17-year-old Kazakh tennis player Zangar Nurlanuly improved his position in the ITF Juniors world rankings following a strong performance at the Australian Open 2026, Qazinform News Agency reports, citing the Kazakhstan Tennis Federation.
Nurlanuly became the first Kazakh tennis player in history to reach the singles semifinals of the junior Australian Open. In the updated rankings, he climbed from 12th to 9th place.
It is worth recalling that the Kazakh player also reached the semifinals of the junior draw at another Grand Slam, the US Open, last year. No player from Kazakhstan has previously managed to reach the semifinals of junior Grand Slam tournaments twice.
As a result, Kazakhstan is now represented by three players in the top 10 of the world rankings across the WTA, ATP and ITF Juniors tours. Newly crowned Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina sits 3rd in the rankings, Alexander Bublik holds 10th place, while Nurlanuly ranks 9th. Anna Danilina, a finalist of the Australian Open 2026 women’s doubles event, is currently ranked 11th.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Kazakhstan’s top player Elena Rybakina triumphed over World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, securing the Australian Open 2026 title and rising to World No. 3.
