[sweetadri06]

1) Laura Robson
Ranking: 53 Previously ranked 131
Win-Loss record: 34 - 25
2012 Highlights: US Open 4th round, Guangzhou F, Palermo SF, Osaka QF, Eastbourne rd16

2) Donna Vekic
Ranking: 108 Previously ranked 392
Win-Loss record:43-12
2012 Highlights: Tashkent F, Pune QF
ITF titles: Bangalore, Fergana

3) Eugene Bouchard
Ranking: 148 Previously ranked 302
Win-Loss record: 46-16
2012 Highlights: Washington DC QF, Montreal rd32, Dallas rd16, Quebec City rd16
ITF titles: Sweden Bastad, Bastad 2, Granby

4) Annika Beck
Ranking: 78 Previously ranked 234
Win-Loss record: 62-16
2012 Highlights: Luxemborg rd16, Quebec City rd16
ITF titles: Moscow,Versmold, Koksijde, Shresbury,Ismaning, Barnstaple

5) Allison Van Uytvanck
Ranking: 218 previously ranked 297
Win-Loss record: 28-18
2012 Highlights: Brussels QF
ITF titles: Glasgow; Kaarst F, Glasgow2 F;

[Viktymise]

Originally Posted by The Dawntreader

Didn't Venus win her first professional match at 14 too?

Another one that I missed. 14 years and 4 months, I think.

To actually say something on-topic, I think that both Keys and Witthoeft will be very good in a few years time. Both have the biggest games of all of the prospects I've seen, and their results this year have shown promise

Bouchard, despite being an obvious crowd favourite, didn't impress me much when I seen her seen her this summer. Glitchy FH technique, and not too much in the way of weapons.

Vekic is impressively solid for her age. A nice mix of defense and offence, with a surprisingly hefty and solid serve. Unconvinced that she's the biggest talent amongst all of these, despite her success at such a young age.

[killerqueen]

All the obvious ones - Robson, Beck, Svitolina, Vekic, Barty, Keys, Bouchard, Putintseva. Maybe Margarita Gasparyan to make a splash as an outside bet?

Also, though they are a bit older than the thread specifies, I hope and thik 2013 could be a breakthrough year for Mladenovic and Burdette. I'd also really like to think that the likes of Caroline Garcia, Daria Gavrilova and Irina Khromacheva improve on mediocre years though they aren't exactly filling me with confidence. (Though saying that, Khromacheva is still only 17 I think so time is still on her side)

[Barktra]

Eventhough she is older than 18 I am interested if Garcia can have a big year next year make some noise

[killerqueen]

Oh also. What do people think of An-Sophie Mestach's chances? She was away injured for a long time, but returned recently with some decent results. I never really paid much attention to her before. what do people expect for her? is she potentially the real deal, a top 100 tour player, or just another top junior who doesn't make it.

[Pump-it-UP]

Keys and Vekic should both establish themselves in the top 60 provided that they stay healthy. Probably top 80/90 for Bouchard.

Crawford and Townsend will be massive in a few years, but I think they're still too raw (especially Crawford) to make an impact in 2013.

[The Dawntreader]

I think Keys is probably the best ball-striker out of that list. Bouchard just doesn't fetch me. Her game is very rudimentary, with no real smoothness or refinement in her strokes. No real innate firepower either, to compensate for glitchy technique.

Putintseva will be too inhibited by her lack of height/reach in the modern game.

[BlueTrees]

I think Svitolina has more potential than Bouchard Otherwise a great list

[Barktra]

I think khromacheva's ball striking is a bit underrated

[austennisfan]

Besides putting Barty down as an America, its a great list. It is interesting that most of the youngsters on that list are from traditional tennis powerhouses.

[iPatty]

I think Keys has the biggest upside out of all of these girls. I would be surprised if she made the jump all the way into the top 50 this year but I think top 70 or 80 is definitely attainable. As for girls like Bouchard, Vekic, and Barty I think it is pretty clear that they will successfully transition from juniors to pros.

As for the other Americans, Min and Pegula both seem to be stalling a little bit...Min moreso than Pegula. We could see some solid results from girls like Duval and Vickery if they work hard and keep improving. The jury is still out on Townsend. She definitely has a lot of racquet skills and flair (reminds me of Schnyder in that regard) but I'm skeptical if she will be able to put it together against the pros on a consistent basis. I really want her to succeed but I'm not sold. Same goes for Crawford. The girl can definitely whack the ball but does she really have what it takes to make it on the tour? I doubt it TBH.

Putintseva, Khromacheva, Gavrilova, Kontaveit, and other hyped girls... Haven't really seen too much from any of them to suggest that they will become elite players.

As for the 1997 crowd it's still way too early to make any kind of concrete predictions. Abanda and Bencic are clearly leading the charge into the pros and I think we will see some success from both of them in 25 and 50Ks next year. Ana Konjuh has a big game for a girl so young and I would like to see Jelena Ostapenko break into the top 400 at least. I'm sure there will be some girls that come out of nowhere from this crop as well.

All in all it seems like younger players are starting to find more success in ITFs than they have in recent years so I'll be interested to see if that trend continues in 2013.

[binky-GOAT]

Nice thread.

I think we need to keep an eye on most youngsters in 2013. I think all will improve in the next year, but obviously some more than others.

Potential wise I think Vekic and Barty are far ahead of the others though, they are just 16 and have been so good in their early pro career:
Vekic: 53-15 in ITF
Barty: 39-8 in ITF

That is scary good. Other girls have worse records and are older. Also having seen both play they really do look like baby champions.

I also liked Khromacheva's game, but she hasn't transitioned into pro's that well, I think she hasn't improved as much in the last year, maybe due to lack of commitment.

[tenisamulo]

5. Ashleigh Barty (USA)

USA? Huh?

[simonsaystennis]

Originally Posted by austennisfan

Besides putting Barty down as an America, its a great list. It is interesting that most of the youngsters on that list are from traditional tennis powerhouses.

Woops, sorry about that Thanks for catching that, I'll edit now. However if she wanted to play for us I certainly wouldn't complain.

[simonsaystennis]

Originally Posted by cswab22

I think khromacheva's ball striking is a bit underrated

Agreed. I watched her play a couple weeks ago on a stream and was pretty impressed. I think she has some nice talent and will do well in a few years. To the people who are suggesting Gavrilova, I don't see anything in her game that makes me think she will make a big move in 2013. I could be wrong, since it's been a while since I've seen her play, but that's my opinion.