Coached by former Roland Garros champion, 18-year-old Austrian wins first WTA 1000 win at Indian Wells

Originally from Austria, Lilli Tagger lives in Varese, Italy, and is coached by Francesca Schiavone, the 2010 Roland Garros champion and former World No. 4. 2025 was an excellent year for the 18-year-old tennis player, who won 3 ITF titles and became champion at Roland Garros, in the junior competition. Tagger was defeated in the last act by the British Hannah Klugman, score 6-2, 6-0.

Roland Garros junior champion Lilli Tagger dominates Varvara Gracheva at Indian Wells

After reaching the third round of qualifying at the Australian Open, Tagger received a wild card into the main draw of Indian Wells, and the Austrian did not waste the chance. She dominated the matchup with Varvara Gracheva and, after one hour and 22 minutes, prevailed 6-2, 6-4.

“I had great emotions before the match. It's something special to be able to play here. When you have an opportunity like this, you want to take advantage of it“, said Tagger after the first WTA 1000 victory of her career, quoted by kurier.at.

In the second round at Indian Wells, the player ranked 119th in the world will meet Maria Sakkari (30 years old, 34 WTA), who is coming off the semi-final in Doha. If successful, Tagger could face Iga Swiatek (24, 2 WTA) in the third round, who plays Kayla Day (26, 187 WTA) in the second round.

Lilli Tagger debuted on the WTA circuit in October 2025, in Jiujiang, China. She impressed and reached the final, being defeated by Anna Blinkova, score 3-6, 3-6. Tagger had managed to defeat Chenting Zhu, Elisabetta Cocciaretto, Tamara Korpatsch and Viktorija Golubic.

Among the 3 ITF titles won by Schiavone's student in 2025 is one obtained in Bucharest, in September 2025, when she defeated Lina Gjorcheska in the final, score 6-4, 3-6, 6-4. In 2026, Tagger won another ITF title in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates.