Stan Put has become European champion in the boys up to and including 14 years in the Czech Most. Stan won in the final of the European Junior Championships with 6-0, 4-6, 6-4 against the Brit Scott Watson and thus follows in the footsteps of many greats such as Djokovic.
The 48th edition of the EJK 14 had a very strong playing field in which the entire top ten of the boys were present. As number seven on the seeding list, our fourteen-year-old compatriot showed, not for the first time, that he can peak at the right moment and has very strong nerves. After three convincing victories, he used those qualities in the quarterfinals against the surprising Czech Pavel Oliver Dufek: 5-7, 6-1, 6-4. In a match with many long, exciting games, accompanied by primal screams from both players, Stan came back strongly after losing the opening set. He won a crucial game, with multiple game points and break points, at 3-1 in the second set, and also remained cool at the important moments in the rest of the match.
After a relatively easy victory in the semi-finals over Pablo Pradat from France (6-4, 6-0), Stan had to work hard again in the final against the third-seeded Brit Scott Watson, against whom he had lost the only previous mutual encounter. Riding on the wave of self-confidence thanks to five victories and in particular a great last set in that semi-final, Stan surfed to a second bagel in a row in the final (6-0). However, the Brit fought back strongly. He broke at the beginning of set two and maintained that lead (4-6). In the third set, both players tried to outdo each other with drop shots, lobs and changes of pace. Stan in particular showed himself to be a master of drop shots - did he watch Alcaraz a lot? - and ran out to 5-1. Watson did not give up and came back to 5-4, after which Stan was allowed to serve for the match for the second time. In this tenth, final game in particular, our compatriot showed that he is made of the right stuff. A double fault early in the game did not deter him and with a series of convincing points he took the spoils.
With a mixture of joy and relief, Stan collapsed onto the gravel, realising that with this European title he had won the biggest prize of his young career so far.
