Family affair for trailblazing teenage sensation Fruhvirtova
Despite the increasing glare of the spotlight and a growing list of high-profile admirers, Czech teenage sensation Brenda Fruhvirtova would appear far removed from all the clamour and intrigue.
In fact, she seems centred, happy to take each passing victory in her stride and intent on letting her on-court achievements do the talking, invariably speaking volumes.
The focus is easy to understand, however. For followers of junior tennis, the talent associated with the Fruhvirtova name is no secret given Brenda and her older sister, Linda, have more than made their mark in recent years, collecting silverware and a raft of plaudits along the way.
Most recently, it was the turn of 13-year-old Brenda to steal the limelight as she became the youngest player to win an ITF junior singles title at Grade 2 level or above since Mirjana Lucic-Baroni – a future Australian Open semi-finalist – in 1995.
A little more than a week after her triumph at J2 Cairo in Egypt, where she also claimed the doubles title on her ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors debut, Brenda told itftennis.com that a strong inner circle helps keep her and Linda’s feet firmly on the ground.
“Tennis is our life,” said Brenda. “We are not aware of anything on our way because we have great parents who protect us since forever and we try to be surrounded with great and nice people with whom we feel safe.”
It certainly is a family affair for the Fruhvirtova sisters, who combined to great effect at last year’s ITF World Junior Tennis Finals in Prostejov, joining forces with Nikola Bartunkova as Czech Republic claimed the nation’s fourth girls’ title.
It was after the final against USA that Brenda and Linda’s father, Hynek, revealed the sisters engaged in “intense” on-court battles during their formative years, which not only motivated them individually but also helped garner respect and support.
Their careers have been intrinsically linked since. In February, Brenda won the prestigious 14-and-under Les Petits As competition in Tarbes, following in the footsteps of Linda who triumphed in the same tournament a year earlier.
Until Brenda’s victory at J2 Cairo and that of fellow Czech Tereza Valentova at J2 Plzen during the same week, Linda, now 15, had been the only 13-year-old to have won an ITF junior tournament at Grade 2 level or above since Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk in 2016.
Such is their unity, the fact Brenda achieved the feat at a slightly younger age than Linda did not provoke even a hint of sibling rivalry, only a nod to their collective efforts going forward.
“We are competitive but we do not care if I reached the title slightly younger or not,” she said. “I am always happy when she wins the title and she is happy when I win the title.
“For us, there are also very important memories which are special with each title. I remember her first ITF victory at the age of 13. The whole family was together in Slovakia and we enjoyed our very rare time together.
“I played a Tennis Europe tournament in the city nearby and we both won our tournaments in singles and doubles. I started my final match at 9.30 in Trnava and my sister started her final match at 9.30 in Piestany.
“We finished our final matches at the same time – my score was 6-3 6-2 and my sister’s score was 6-2 6-3. She also won doubles on Saturday and I also won doubles on Saturday. This is what inspires us.”
Their progress and prominence have given rise to comparisons with the Pliskova and Williams sisters, and murmurings as to whether the Fruhvirtovas will become the latest pair to fly the sibling flag on the world stage.
The bandwagon is certainly gaining momentum. Following her heroics in Prostejov last August, Linda was described as a “Pit Bull from the baseline” and someone who possesses similar traits to American star Coco Gauff.
France’s Alize Cornet, meanwhile, claimed Brenda was an “amazing” prospect after the Czech prodigy showcased her enormous potential by going toe-to-toe with the world No. 51 during Patrick Mouratoglou’s Ultimate Tennis Showdown 2 in August.
The future would appear bright, although it is certain the Fruhvirtova sisters will not be getting ahead of themselves. For now, Brenda is content to take one step at a time, confident that her career is following an upward trajectory, although memories of her breakthrough victory in Cairo are likely to live long in the memory.
“It was the best start to my ITF junior career,” added Brenda, who defeated home favourite Hania Abouelsaad in the singles final. “I will never forget this tournament and Cairo and Egypt will always have a special place in my heart.
“Before I went to the tournament, I was excited to play and of course I wanted to record the best result possible but I was not sure what was going to happen. I just focussed carefully match by match and I played better match by match.
“For me, winning my first ITF tournament was very important and it gives me confidence to continue to work hard on my way to being the best.”