When the invitation to attend the season-ending ATP Finals and hit with some of the world’s best players dropped into his inbox, it was an offer which Switzerland’s Dominic Stricker could not refuse.

For two weeks, Stricker, who last month emerged from an all-Swiss final with Leandro Riedi to be crowned Roland Garros boys’ champion, was able to share a court with some esteemed names.

Left-hander Stricker was able to list eventual ATP Finals champion Daniil Medvedev, US Open winner Dominic Thiem and Top 10 duo Stefanos Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev as heavyweight sparring partners in London.  

That said, the 18-year-old is no stranger to training with the game’s elite, having been given the opportunity, alongside Riedi and fellow countryman Jerome Kym, to join Roger Federer in Dubai ahead of January’s Australian Open.

Federer was among the first to congratulate Stricker in the immediate aftermath of his victory in Paris, and the Swiss prodigy is keen to absorb as much as possible when opportunities arise to rub shoulders with the stars.

“It was unbelievable at the ATP Finals,” Stricker told itftennis.com. “I was there for two weeks and it was an amazing experience to hit with Thiem, Medvedev, Tsitsipas and Rublev – four of the best players in the world. I really enjoyed every practice and learned so much.

“When the e-mail from the ATP arrived saying they were looking for hitting partners and asking me to go to London, I was planning to play some tournaments as I was in good shape after Paris.

“I had to decide what do to but it was definitely the right decision to go to London. We were in lockdown there of course and in a bubble so I had a lot of contact with players and were close with them around the place.

“It really was something special. I learned so much: how players of that calibre play the day before a match, go about things the day of the match and how they warm up. I feel it will help me, for sure. I really did enjoy every single minute.”

Following his sojourn to London and with the 2020 campaign coming to a close, Stricker is now back in Switzerland, training as hard as ever but also looking forward to the holiday season and spending some quality time with his family.

As he does so, Stricker will be able to reflect on a year disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, but also one which has brought him Junior Grand Slam glory and global acknowledgement.

The winning moment at Roland Garros is proudly displayed as the teenager’s WhatsApp profile picture, although it is an image which as has been beamed far and wide as his stock has risen drastically.

Despite the reduced playing schedule, Stricker also reached the last eight at the Australian Open, claimed doubles glory in the French capital alongside Italy’s Flavio Cobolli and enjoyed solid exposure to the ITF World Tennis Tour. All in all, it has been a year to savour.

“It was a special season and a hard one for everyone as nobody really knew how many tournaments there would be or, at times, if there would be much tennis,” said Stricker. “Looking back, though, it was a very good year for me and I have improved a lot.

“I was so glad to get the chance to play one last Junior Grand Slam after the junior events at Wimbledon and the US Open were cancelled. I just went out there to try my best and I won it, which was a great achievement.

“While I don’t think there has been a huge difference, life has definitely changed since winning in Paris and a lot more people tend to recognise me on the Tour as a Junior Grand Slam champion. It’s been a memorable year.”

With his junior career now at an end, Stricker will embark upon 2021 with renewed purpose and fresh goals as he bids to make inroads and land some blows within the professional ranks.

It is something which his most recent training partners have all done themselves in the not too distant past, and it is a new dawn which Stricker is determined to embrace.

If any additional inspiration is required, he could do far worse than cast his memory back to Roland Garros as there was plenty on offer on nearby courts.

In the same week as Stricker was conquering all before him, Poland’s Iga Swiatek was making history in the women’s draw, while Hugo Gaston of France was dispatching Swiss hero Stan Wawrinka and taking Thiem to a fifth set.

Both players only called time on their junior careers two years earlier and, if offered, similar progress in the coming weeks and months would be grasped with both hands.  

“I haven’t really set a goal but I want to try and improve my ATP ranking and to start playing Challenger events,” added Stricker. “I just want to go as far as possible and, who knows, maybe go back to Paris and enjoy some more good times there.”

Should things go particularly well, perhaps the likes of Thiem and Medvedev might be more than just hitting partners in the not too distant future.