The YONEX Belgian International 2025 kicks off tomorrow, taking place from Wednesday 10th to Saturday 13rd of September in Leuven, Belgium. As one of the highlights of the European Circuit, the tournament offers a line-up of top European players – including the home favourite and reigning men’s singles champion, Julien Carraggi.
This will be Carraggi’s first European Circuit tournament of the year, with a round of 16 finish at the Super 300 Thailand Masters as his best result so far. Now, the Belgian player returns to his home turf in this International Challenge tournament, aiming for another strong performance.
Playing at home
For Carraggi, this tournament is special in many ways. The 25-year-old lives in Leuven and will compete very close from where he trains. “It’s amazing to play just a few minutes away from my place,” he says. “Especially having my family and close ones around.”
With the support of the home crowd and the possibility to prepare in his usual training facilities, Julien feels right at home. “Compared to other tournaments, I don’t have to think about travelling and jet lag. My training facilities, coaches, and physio are just around the corner.”
Carraggi is seeded third and will face Sweden’s Gustav Bjorkler in the first round – a dangerous opponent as we saw earlier this year at the European Championships, defeating higher-ranked players and pushing Toma Junior Popov to three games.
Last year, Carraggi’s win in this tournament was one of the standout moments of his year and career, and one he’ll always remember. “The biggest memory is stepping on court for the final. A day I had been looking forward to and dreaming of as a kid. Winning or losing wouldn’t have changed that feeling, but getting that win just turned it even better.”
Although he’s in as the defending champion, he’s focused more on the now. “This year is a bit different coming back just two weeks ago from the World Championships,” he says. “So the approach has been different just by the schedule but I will enter the tournament with the same goals.”
Building momentum for a busy period
After competing in the World Championships in Paris, Carraggi wants to use that experience to fuel his performances in the upcoming months. “I’ll try to bring back the level and experience into all of my next tournaments,” he says.
Before the World Championships, the Belgian spent time training with the Popov brothers in France in an environment he finds both intense and motivating. “The Popovs always put a high standard of training and having other top European players was amazing as preparation.”
Now back in Belgium and preparing for a stretch of key tournaments, Carraggi knows what he wants. “My goal is to feel good on court, play my best game possible, and definitely win again at home.”
You can see the order of play and results here.
