January marked a milestone month for the rising Brit, who clinched silverware at the W35 Loughborough and W35 Sunderland with Liv Hovde and Laura Hietaranta respectively. McDonald added these trophies to an existing W25 title she claimed last year in Glasgow alongside fellow Brit Maia Lumsden.

We caught up with the 18-year-old to discuss her recent title-winning glory and how she’s found the transition from the junior game, as she navigates her way around life as a professional tennis player.

“It gives you a lot of confidence whether it’s in the singles or doubles game,” McDonald said when asked about the impact of winning back-to-back ITF titles.

“It’s very helpful and it’s good to share a court with someone. They were new and different partners on both weeks but it’s nice to have someone there with you.”

The young Brit boasted an impressive junior career, racking up six singles titles and 10 doubles titles – as well as reaching a career-high ranking of junior world No.8.

Since transitioning to the pro tour in September 2023, McDonald has also moved over to receive support from our Pro Scholarship Programme presented by Lexus (PSP) – the highest level of support offered to developing players by the LTA.

PSP supports players between the age of 16-24 with the best chance of reaching the ATP/WTA top 100 singles within five years and provides them with individually tailored support and coaching, financial backing and access to world class science and medicine support.

Alongside that, McDonald has also made the National Tennis Centre in Roehampton her full-time training base where she is surrounded by some of the elite British players including Katie Boulter, Jodie Burrage and Harriet Dart.

“Juniors is pretty group based – you can go on trips and stay there the whole week but with seniors, when you’re done you move onto the next tournament pretty much straight away” McDonald added.

“You’re able to see things in a different way. The game is very different from juniors to seniors, so it’s a matter of adjusting to that as well.”

“My coach and I have been working together for just over six months now and we’re trying to improve every aspect of my game. I’ve been focusing a lot on the physical side to get stronger and help me pursue that aggressive baseline game”.

“I’ve also been mixing in with a few of the more experience players here (at the NTC). It’s good to be able to ask them questions sometimes and just see how they perform on the training court to try and apply elements to my matches.

“It’s the way they come across on court, I think I need to take a bit of that away – being able to look confident and almost adopting the ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ mindset and positive body language.”

McDonald is just one of a strong crop of upcoming British talent who are emerging on the scene. Mimi Xu and Hannah Klugman join McDonald as two of the latest youngsters to be supported by the PSP, while Ranah Stoiber and Isabelle Lacy are also getting a taste of what it’s like to compete at the pro level.

For many young Brits, competing on the professional circuit presents fresh opportunities and McDonald is looking forward to relishing the chances that come her way, particularly the British summer swing.

“It’s exciting and it’s really nice to be around. Everyone is rooting for each other so it’s great for everyone to push each other on but also being able to balance the friendships too.

“It’s a full-time senior schedule now so there will be loads of events but I’m looking forward to the grass court season on home soil and to be able to play more Futures tournaments”.