At the 2026 United Cup, 26-year-old German player Patrick Zahraj opened up about touring with diabetes, hoping to encourage young athletes that "there is always a way." Professional tennis is famously demanding—nail-biting competitions, grueling and unpredictable schedules, and a year-round calendar that pushes athletes to their limits. Yet some players navigate this punishing circuit while managing chronic illnesses or disabilities. Their achievements stand as powerful reminders that physical challenges need not define one's ceiling. Here are the athletes proving that determination transcends diagnosis:
ATP
Type 1 Diabetes
Alexander Zverev
Country: Germany
Born: 20 April 1997
Best Ranking: No. 2
Highlight: Three-time Grand Slam Finalist, Olympic Champion, Two-time year end Champion, 7 Masters Titles
Diagnosed at the age of three. He launched the Alexander Zverev Foundation, a charity to support people with diabetes in 2022.
Patrick Zahraj
Country: Germany
Born: 17 July 1999
Best Ranking: No. 213
He was diagnosed in 2009. He played college tennis at UCLA, won two-time All-Pac 12 honouree and named a two-time ITA Scholar-Athlete.
Juan Cruz Aragone
Country: United States
Born: 28 Jun 1995
Best Ranking: No. 224
He was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in January 2012. He committed to playing college tennis at the University of Virginia. He was named to the NCAA All-Tournament team twice, in both singles and doubles, and was a two-time ACC Tournament MVP.
Zhou Yi 周意
Country: China
Born: 14 March 2005
Best Ranking: 248
Highlight: Two ITF World Tour Titles
Zhou Yi was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at age 14.
Autism Spectrum Disorder
Jenson Brooksby
Country: United States
Born: 26 October 2000
Best Ranking: No. 33
Highlight: 1 ATP Tour Title
Brooksby was diagnosed with severe autism as a young child and was nonverbal until age 4, requiring intensive, 40-hour-a-week ABA therapy.
Crohn's disease
Alexandre Müller
Country: France
Born: 1 February 1997
Best Ranking: No. 38
Highlight: 1 ATP tour title
At the age of 14, the Frenchman was diagnosed with Crohn's disease, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease.
Hearing Impaired
Yannick Hanfmann
Country: Germany
Born: 13 November 1991
Best Ranking: 45
Highlight: 7 ATP Challenger Single Titles, Australian Open Double Semifinalist
Suffers from a hearing impairment in both ears since birth.
WTA
Ectrodactyly
Francesca Jones
Country: Great Britain
Born: 19 September 2000
Best Ranking: No. 71
Highlight: 2 Challenger titles and 9 ITF World Tour titles
Born with Ectrodactyly Ectodermal Dysplasia (EEC), resulting in fewer digits and a cleft palate. She has a thumb and three fingers on each hand (eight total fingers) and seven toes.
Spondyloarthritis
Eva Lys
Country: Germany
Born: 12 January 2002
Best Ranking: 39
Highlight: 3 ITF World Tour Titles
Lys was diagnosed in 2020 with spondyloarthritis, a rheumatic autoimmune, causing stiffness and pain, especially in joints near the spine and lower limbs, which she manages by balancing training and recovery to continue her professional career.