Young tennis ace Stefan Kozlov born in Skopje, Macedonia, is considered one of the most promising U.S. juniors in the American tennis pipeline. He reached the Australian Open junior boys’ final in January.
And in December he was a finalist at the prestigious Orange Bowl International Championship held at Frank Veltri Park in Plantation, FL.
He’s also no stranger to hitting with Grand Slam champion superstars. He has practiced with Roger Federer on four occasions and three times with Andy Murray at Crandon Park, FL.
In March, Kozlov had the opportunity to practice with Rafael Nadal.
Despite those previous opportunities, Kozlov admits he wasn’t prepared for the power and spin from the ball Nadal delivers.
“I think that’s one of the toughest hits I’ve ever had in my life,” said Kozlov, who admitted he was nervous at the start of their 45-minute hit. “I’ve heard people talking about his ball, but I didn’t realize it would be like that.
“If it lands near the baseline, I jumped five feet back and had to really spin it short. It was really physical, and I didn’t realize he was going to hit like that before a match.”
Stefan got a glimpse in the life of a tennis star. After he finished his practice with Nadal, the Skopje native signed over 60 autographs.
Just days ago, Kozlov made it to the Roland Garros semi-final, and is currently the number two ranked junior in the world - soon to go pro. His father has a tennis academy in Pembroke Pines, FL where he practices.
