'End goal is to be top 100, consistently competing on the ATP Tour': Phil Sekulic talks ideal 'dream'

I have discussed at length over the past year what the future stocks of Australian men's tennis look like regarding the current group and casting an eye forward with big question marks around whether a cohort of young players with more time on their side can turn into top 100 players, possibly top 50 players, or maybe a future Grand Slam champion.

Many people have shared the same concerns as the clock ticks for our existing bunch of men in the 1-130 ranking bracket who sit in the 25-34 year age range, and what impact they can have in the three categories mentioned for the remainder of their careers.

Then, to the players we have age identified in the top 1000 rankings, who we are keeping a close eye on. One of them is 22-year-old Philip Sekulic, who has just come off winning back-to-back ITF M25 titles in India in Kolkata and Mumbai, respectively. The title in Kolkata was his first pro singles title in his fifth attempt.

"Been a while coming, I actually made back-to-back finals in my first two futures I played in 2021, taken me quite a long time to finally get one, but really happy to get two now," Sekulic told me on The First Serve Live on Monday Night.

He has spent the past fortnight in India with his dad, whom he describes as his biggest influence and support system.

When Sekulic got to a career-high ranking of No.225 in 2024 and made his debut in Wimbledon qualifying, he looked bound to make the jump into the top 200.

Fast forward to March 2025, and injury struck, not returning to the tour until this year's ATP Challenger in Canberra to start the Aussie summer, with his ranking taking a hit, as low as No.600 at one stage.

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From the first moment I watched Sekulic play a few years ago, he instantly caught my attention - highly competitive, with an edge, animated and talented. I wanted to continue to watch the evolution and what he might be able to turn into, as we search for the possible future stars of Australian tennis.

In 2021, he was named Male Junior Athlete of the Year at the Australian Tennis Awards. In 2022, at the Australian Open, he won his first round men's singles qualifying match. In 2023, he finished the year impressively, winning his maiden ATP Tour singles main draw match at the Chengdu Open to finish inside 300 in the rankings.

As we speak, he sits at No.356 in the live rankings, jumping around 150 spots with his two titles as he looks to continue the momentum to try and propel him back to his career high as a starting point.

"I will be at home for a week, week and a half, and then heading back to Asia to play some Challenger events," Sekulic said.

Born in Perth, but having made Brisbane his home, he was formerly part of Tennis Australia's National Tennis Academy. He represented Australia in Junior Competitions and won the Under 12 National Championships in 2015.

"I've been playing tennis almost 20 years, I definitely had a lot of that hunger when I was really young. I always wanted to do well, [be] very competitive," said Sekulic.

"But I feel like in the last couple of years, that spark maybe fell off a little bit, but being injured and having a lot of time away from tennis made me realise I really love to play tennis, I love to compete, this is what I love to do, I definitely feel like I have got a bit more of spark playing now."

Sekulic is one of five men's players in the age profile that Australians are curious about, including James McCabe, 22 (No.234), Eddie Winter, 21 (No.450), Pavle Marinkov, 20 (No.593), and Cruz Hewitt, 17 (No.721), currently inside the top 1000. Ironically, Sekulic, Winter, Marinkov and Hewitt are all managed by W Sports and Media.

They are quite some way back in the pack, and the jury is certainly out, as we try to mount the case of whether Aussie tennis can produce another top 100 group of players at least into the future.

"I have a lot of desire to just get the best out of myself, but ultimately the end goal for me is to be a top 100 player, consistently competing on the ATP Tour, that would be my dream," Sekulic shared.

Staying healthy is the first priority and you don't have any choice but to roll up the sleeves and get to work and try and elevate to the next level. Australian men's tennis needs to find some diamonds in the 22 and under age group who can shine on the global stage in the years to come.

Sekulic has got a competitive advantage, and that will make me tune in.

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