Storm Sanders

Storm Hunter (née Sanders; born 11 August 1994) is an Australian professional tennis player.

She reached a career-high singles ranking of world No. 119 on 18 October 2021, and a career-high doubles ranking of world No. 1 on 6 November 2023, becoming the third Australian woman to hold the top spot.

Hunter won her first Grand Slam title in mixed doubles at the 2022 US Open.

She has also won eight doubles titles on the WTA Tour, one doubles title on the WTA Challenger Tour as well as 3 singles titles and 21 doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit.

Beak coached Hunter until she relocated to Perth with her parents in 2005.

Hunter continued playing tennis and returned to Queensland the following year to represent Western Australia in the Bruce Cup in Mackay in August 2006 and to compete in the Head Queensland State Age Championships in Rockhampton in September 2006.

Hunter debuted on the ITF Junior Circuit in December 2007, and on the senior circuit in November 2008.

Hunter went to high school at Kolbe Catholic College but graduated from the School of Isolated and Distance Education in Western Australia in 2011, after which she received a Melbourne-based tennis scholarship.

She won her first professional tournament in February 2013.

In 2013, Hunter began attending the University of Canberra where she studied a Bachelor of Science in Psychology degree.

Storm's parents and younger brother all serve in the Australian Defence Force.

Hunter began her year ranked 674 in the world.

Her first tournament was the Sydney International, where she received a wildcard into qualifying.

She stunned Eugenie Bouchard in the first round in two tiebreak sets, but lost in the second round against Misaki Doi.

She then received a wildcard into qualifying at the Australian Open where she lost in the first round against Yuliya Beygelzimer.

In February, after failing to qualify for the Burnie International, Hunter celebrated a breakthrough victory, winning the $25k Launceston Tennis International.

She won through both, the qualifying and main draws, without dropping a set.

She also achieved the rare feat of defeating the top seeds in both the qualifying draw (Mari Tanaka) and the main draw (Olivia Rogowska) en route to victory.

She reached the top 500 in the WTA rankings for the first time after the tournament win.

A month later, she reached the final of the $25k event in Ipswich, Queensland, losing to Jelena Pandžić in three sets.

In July, together with her British partner Naomi Broady, Hunter won the $50k Gold River Challenger, defeating Robin Anderson and Lauren Embree, in straight sets.

In the US Open qualifying, she lost in the first round to Nigina Abduraimova from Uzbekistan.

Hunter year rank was 242 in the world.

Hunter began the season at the Brisbane International, having received a wildcard into qualifying.

She opened with a three-set win over Irina-Camelia Begu.

Although taking the opening set, Hunter lost against third seed Hsieh Su-wei in the second round, in three sets.

The following week, she was awarded a wildcard to the main draw of the Hobart International.

A first-round win over Peng Shuai saw her match up with second seed Kirsten Flipkens.

Pushing the top-20 ranked Belgian to the brink, Hunter lost in a tough three-set match, lasting over two and a half hours.

Despite the close loss, it was announced that she had been given a wildcard into the singles main draw of the Australian Open, having been given wildcards for the doubles draw the previous two years.

She played Camila Giorgi in round one, losing on her major singles debut, in three sets.

She also lost in the first round of women's and mixed doubles.

Given a wildcard for the Hobart International, Hunter lost in round one to Camila Giorgi, in three sets.

She was then given a wildcard for the Australian Open, but lost at the first stage again, this time to world No. 46, Klára Koukalová, in straight sets.

In July, she qualified for the Jiangxi International – the first time Hunter has come through qualifying at a WTA Tour-level event.

She lost to Vania King in the first round.

She also represented Australia at the 2020 Summer Olympics, which due to the COVID-19 pandemic were held in 2021, reaching the quarterfinals in the women's doubles competition.

Hunter was born in Rockhampton, where she began playing tennis at the age of six after watching the Australian Open on television.

Her father signed her up with a local tennis club where she was coached by Robert Beak.

Her initial progress was slow - in Beak's words Storm "wasn't the most talented" despite her strong work ethic and determination - until, according to Beak, Hunter's skills suddenly and rapidly improved after "something clicked".