With glory on the line, Oceania’s top junior talent put their best foot forward on the court on day 1 of the VICTOR Oceania Junior Championships 2025.
While most results went as expected, one surprise did shake things up, adding an extra layer of excitement to an already intense tournament. From the first serve to the final point, every player brought their best, refusing to hold back. The battle for the title is clearly underway, and the level of play shows that no one is taking this lightly.
No Major Stumbles for the Front-Runners
In the mens’ singles draws, the top seeds advanced confidently through the rounds. Their dominance was evident in straight-game victories and composed performances under pressure. However, the tournament wasn’t without its drama—an early-round upset saw Australia’s Wey Shawn Ng knock out Northern Marianas’ Marlon Bautista (6th seed) in a 21-10, 21-7 showdown, briefly shaking up the draw.
The doubles events delivered some of the most thrilling matches of the tournament. Australia and New Zealand reaffirmed their strength in the discipline, with several of their pairs reaching the next round. Raphael Deloy and Lezhi Zhu (NZL) showed why they are the number one seed in the men’s doubles, with a strong 21-3, 21-10 result against Guam’s Yu Xuan Xia and Allan Zeng.
TAHITI VS NORTHERN MARIANAS DOUBLES THRILLER
A crowd quickly formed on Court 1 this afternoon, as men’s doubles number three seeds Marlon Bautista and Dave Bryan Odicta (NMP) took on Tahiti’s Matt Chagnot and Mike Mi You. The Northern Marianas duo were off to a strong start and snuck away with a first game win 21-19. Going into the second game, Chagnot and Mi You refocused and clawed their way back to a game win. In the deciding game, it was the hometown pair that took the lead into the break. However, the Tahiti partners regrouped with sharper net play and aggressive smashes to even the score. This momentum seemed to carry them through, and Chagnot and Mi You took the final game to win the match (19-21, 21-15, 21-18) in just over 40 minutes.
Coming Up Tomorrow
In the round of 16 play, we expect to see even closer matches than today.
Women’s singles number one seed, Victoria Tjonadi (AUS) finally takes the court, and will face Charmaine Bautista (NMP) on Court 3 at 1:20pm.
On Court 1, Shaina Malonzo (NMP) will look to continue her form from the teams tournament. Her and Te Pa Tupa (COK) will face off at 2:10pm.
At the same time, Malonzo’s doubles partner from their historic Northern Marianas Junior Mixed Team, Lina Tsukagoshi will play Guam’s Offeia Yordy on Court 3 for a spot in the quarter finals.
The mixed doubles also kicks off in the morning, and we will continue to see more high-level competition in the men’s singles.
By mid afternoon, the quarter-final lineup will be set.
As players continue to battle, we will know the semi-finalists by the end of the day.
While the early rounds have largely gone the way of the favorites, the tournament is far from predictable. One upset, one misstep, and an underdog could completely reshape the race for the title.
