Janice Tjen About

Janice Tjen: the Pepperdine grad who became Indonesia's best since Basuki

Janice Tjen is the highest-ranked Indonesian woman of her generation, and she got to the top 40 by a route almost nobody on tour uses. Born in Jakarta in 2002, the high costs of turning professional meant Tjen and her parents decided to develop her game through college tennis first — she played at the University of Oregon, transferred to Pepperdine in 2021, and graduated in 2024 with a sociology degree. She didn't pick up a full-time private coach until British coach Chris Bint joined her in April 2025, after five or six years out of college without one.

The game is built on a heavy, high-percentage serve and clean ball-striking off both wings. She plays right-handed, and the 2025 numbers tell the story: 69% won on first serve, 61% on second-serve return, and 62% on serve-pressure points. What fans gravitate toward is the win habit — between April and October 2025 she won 72 of the 84 matches she played across all levels.

The breakthrough was nearly vertical. Tjen rocketed from 578 at the start of 2025 to a year-end No. 53. Ranked 149 and through qualifying at the US Open, she upset world No. 24 Veronika Kudermetova in the first round to become the first Indonesian to win a Grand Slam match since 2003. Weeks later she reached her first tour final in São Paulo — beating third seed Alexandra Eala and sixth seed Francesca Jones en route — then closed the year by lifting her maiden WTA singles trophy at the Chennai Open, defeating Kimberly Birrell and adding the doubles title alongside Aldila Sutjiadi the same day. That made her the first Indonesian woman to win a Main Tour singles title since Angelique Widjaja.

The 2026 beat has been about consolidation at a level no Indonesian has touched in two decades. After a run at the 2026 Australian Open, she broke into the top 50 at No. 47 — becoming just the second Indonesian ever inside the top 50, and the first since Yayuk Basuki. Her career-high No. 36 followed on 23 February 2026.

Janice Tjen at a glance

Janice Tjen is 24 years old, represents INA, and is ranked No. 49 in the WTA rankings.