As he stalks his way through the boys’ draw at the Australian Open, animal-lover Arthur Cazaux has grand designs on finishing 2020 as the year-end junior world No. 1.

Hours after the updated standings confirmed the 17-year-old had made the Top 5 of the ITF World Tennis Tour Junior Rankings presented by IMG Academy for the first time, Cazaux reached the third round in Melbourne.

No. 5 seed Cazaux will now play Hungary’s Peter Fajta for a place in the quarter-finals after overpowering Lukas Neumayer of Austria 6-4 6-1 as his Australian Open debut continues to show plenty of promise.

A Junior Grand Slam title is also very much on Cazaux’s 2020 wish list, although the tennis journey upon which he has embarked, which included victory at Traralgon earlier this month, was by no means guaranteed.

Growing up in the sports-crazy city of Montpellier meant there was plenty of competition for Cazaux’s sporting affection, and tennis was close to being cast aside.

“I played handball and when I was 11 years old I had to choose between tennis and handball,” Cazaux told itftennis.com. “I was good at handball and played for the No. 1 team in France. It was so difficult to choose.

“I love sport and Montpellier has so many great teams in handball, football and rugby. It really was a tough choice but I opted for tennis and I am happy that I did.”

Dig a little deeper, however, and perhaps the die was cast from a very early age. Despite coming from a family with no direct tennis lineage, Cazaux’s infatuation with the sport began long ago.

“I was only two or three years old when I was sat in front of the television and Rafael Nadal was playing at Roland Garros. More or less since this day I have been a big fan of his,” said Cazaux.

“It was Nadal who introduced me to tennis and I started out in the sport because of him. I had a shock when I saw him play and I was so impressed. That’s what got me interested in tennis.”

Cazaux reveals that he harbours hopes of bumping into Nadal while in Melbourne, although he does have business to attend to, principally winning a Junior Grand Slam title, something his “idol” failed to accomplish.

Whether that is achieved or not, Cazuax is very much part of a promising contingent of French players. Hugo Gaston and Clara Burel, aged 19 and 18 respectively, are making their mark in the professional ranks, while three girls are currently grouped in the Top 20 and two boys graded in the Top 10 of their respective rankings.

“We have a big group with many players who are playing extremely well and I am very happy to be a part of this group,” added Cazaux. “We support each other, boost each other and look to progress each other.”

One of those highly-rated French players is Harold Mayot, who is the top-seeded player in the boys’ draw at the Australian Open, and he joined Cazaux in round three following a 6-2 6-2 victory over American Aidan Mayo. Mayot faces another American, this time qualifier Alexander Bernard, in the third round.

No. 2 seed Martin Damm also progressed at the expense of Serbia’s Hamad Medjedovic, although the American was forced to recover from a set down to win 6-7(3) 6-4 6-4. France’s Lilian Marmousez stands between him and a place in the last eight.

The only other seeded boy in action on Tuesday was Switzerland’s Dominic Stricker, who dispatched Coleman Wong of Hong Kong 6-4 6-4 to set up a third-round showdown with China’s Yu Zhang.