ITF

30 Spring 2020 ITF World to eventual semi-finalist Timo Legout of France – was especially revealing. "There were times when I thought that I couldn't beat the top guys but after the last six months or so I started to believe more," added Montsi, who writes music and plays both the piano and drums. "I'm not competing for experience anymore, I'm on a mission to win titles and Junior Grand Slams." Perhaps that momentary doubt stemmed, in part, to dissenting outside voices who, according to Montsi himself, questioned aspects of his game and disputed whether he possessed the ability to land knockout blows against top-level opponents. "Many people have said I'm too small and I don't have the power so I told myself, 'let's prove these people wrong'. It has been working well for me," he said. Montsi was born in East London on South Africa's Eastern Cape and he picked up a racket for the first time in a bid to emulate his older brother, Siphosothando. Siphosothando Montsi is three years Khololwam's senior and was himself a promising junior player, while he is currently continuing his tennis career at the University of Illinois where he is a sophomore. The younger Montsi brother was seven years of age when he started his tennis odyssey. He was later spotted as a part of a 12-and-under talent identification camp organised by the ITF in 2012 which brought together a selection of the most promising talent from each zone in Africa. He has received significant support from the ITF and the Grand Slam Development Fund since, including a $25,000 ITF Junior Player Grant this year. Such assistance has played a sizeable part in his development and added to the natural advancement provided by his upbringing. "When my brother broke into the Top 100, I was probably the happiest little brother in the world because it gave me something to work hard for," said Montsi. "We played with each other a lot in the backyard and I think as for the first time in history two boys from Africa held a junior ranking within the Top 20. "It's so special to be in the Top 20 coming from Africa because there's not a lot of us," Montsi told ITFWorld. "I'm super proud of myself because I worked hard for this and I'm grateful to the people who have helped me get here. "I'm super proud of Eliakim also. He is my bro and he worked just as hard to get to this position. A few years back we would sit in the hotel room and talk about being one of the top-ranked junior players. I always said that we should believe in ourselves, trust in God and we will make it. "I've always believed in myself and I always knew I could do anything and now to be a Top 15 junior player, it gives me tons of confidence to compete against anyone." There have been occasions, however, when that seemingly ironclad belief has been tested and required some fortifying. One particular quotation from Montsi during January's Australian Open – he reached the second round of the boys' draw before falling the competitive attitude we had back then has helped us both. "In the early days of my tennis career, I looked up to my brother and parents a lot. They had the biggest influence on me growing up and still do. The biggest motivation in my career is just to do big things for myself and my family. "Growing up in South Africa has been really cool. I moved around the country a few times with my family and I enjoyed those moments. There were also tough times, like when my mother didn't live with us for a few years as she had to stay back in East London to work. "There have been lots of ups and downs over the years and my parents sacrificed a lot for me and my brother. Without those big sacrifices, I wouldn't be here answering these questions." One thing is for certain. All the sacrifice will be more than worthwhile should Montsi pursue a similar path to the South African sporting JUNIORS/DEVELOPMENT " I've always believed in myself and I always knew I could do anything and now to be a Top 15 junior player, it gives me tons of confidence to compete against anyone." Above Montsi opened his Junior Grand Slam account for 2020 at the Australian Open

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