World junior No. 8 Perez Alarcon a beacon for women's tennis in Peru
Peru isn’t exactly renowned as a production line for tennis talent - particularly in the women’s game - but it is safe to say there are positive signs on the horizon.
Laura Arraya, an iconic figure in South American’s women’s tennis and captain of Peru’s Billie Jean King Cup women’s team, has just two players inside the WTA’s top 1000 to pick from for their upcoming appearance in the America’s Group I next month, but she has reason to be optimistic for the nation's tennis future.
“Women's tennis on our continent is growing little by little,” said the 1991 Wimbledon quarter-finalist. “It is sustained, and more tournaments are the key. There are many new girls, and more opportunities for them and their coaches.”
Arraya's words are illustrated by the emergence of 17-year-old Lucciana Perez Alarcon, the current junior world No. 8, who is tipped to be of the great hopes of Peruvian sport.
Perez Alarcon already has nine titles to her name on the ITF World Tennis Tour Juniors, include two at J300 level this year.
"The truth is that I'm doing quite well,” Perez Alarcon told itftennis.com. “Being in this position gives me a lot of motivation to continue improving and to achieve my goals.
“I'm calm about [the future]. You must go step by step and work very hard.”
Originally from Lima, Lu, as she is known to her family and friends, started playing tennis aged 4 after her Grandfather introduced her to the sport. She fell head over heels for tennis after taking lessons at Lima’s Terrazas club, where she also practiced swimming and gymnastics. At the age of nine, she decided to focus solely on rackets and yellow balls, drawn by the lure of a competitive, combative sport and "because I love it".
An admirer of world No. 1 Iga Swiatek and Spaniard Rafael Nadal, Perez Alarcon represented Peru at the Billie Jean King Cup Juniors Finals in 2021. In 2022, she stepped up again and played in the junior competitions at Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the US Open.
“It was a unique experience that taught me a lot,” she reflected. “Being in the majors is an experience that adds a lot to you. Last year, I did not have the expected results (she fell in the first round at all three junior Grand Slams) but beyond that, everything was positive. It helped me to learn.”
Winning Roland Garros is her ultimate goal, but she proved more than capable of winning on all surfaces last year when she clinched the J1 Nottingham doubles title alongside Argentine Luciano Moyano.
Perez Alarcon has already had a taste of professional success too – winning her maiden women’s doubles crown on the ITF World Tennis Tour alongside wild card Anastasia Iamachkine at W15 Lima last November, four months after making a winning debut in doubles in the Billie Jean King Cup to help Peru secure promotion from Group II.
“It was a very good debut,” she remembers. “Being with the team and with Laura Arraya, our captain [and the former WTA world No. 14], was a beautiful experience.”
Perez Alarcon will get to do it all again on 11-15 April in Cucuta, Colombia, when Peru go head-to-head with the host nation, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Guatemala and Bolivia in Americas Group I.
“It has always been very nice to play for my country,” she added. “Being part of the BJK Cup is a unique experience."
At her current rate of progress, she may be set for plenty more of those in tennis in the years ahead.