Photo: Martin SIdorjak
The week after a Grand Slam is always a bit quiet, but last week more than usual.
There was no WTA tennis and only one Top 10 player competing in the three events on the men’s side.
But just because Alexander Zverev basically had the week to himself, that does not mean everything went his way.
Fear not, the action ramps up again this week, including some Canadian content.
Here’s what you need to know.
In Case You Missed It: Bublik wins battle of the Alex’s
Given there was only one Top 10 player competing last week, a title for a player named Alexander was not a big surprise.
However, it was Bubik, not Zverev who ended up lifting a trophy.
The drop-shotting Kazakh won his first career title in Montpellier, upsetting the world No. 3 in straight sets. He took out the top two seeds, having beaten second seed Roberto Bautista Agut in a third-set tiebreak in the quarter-finals, on his way to the title.
Bublik had been 0-4 in his career in finals prior to beating Zverev in Montpellier.
For a minute, it looked like it could be a double-title weekend for the Ymer brothers, as both Elias and Mikael reached semi-finals of their respective events, but both failed to reach the final.
Mikael lost to Zverev in Montpellier, while Elias, who had knocked off top seed Aslan Karatsev in the second round of Pune, lost a three-set thriller to Joao Sousa. Sousa went on to win the title in India, his first since 2018, beating Emil Ruusuvuori in the final.
Albert Ramos-Vinolas claimed the first clay title of 2022, beating qualifier Alejandro Tabilo in the final of the Cordoba Open. Tabilo had upset top seed Diego Schwartzman in the semi-finals.
There were no events on the WTA Tour last week.
What to Watch: Canadians Return in Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Félix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov will both look to carry their great form to start 2022 across the globe from Australia to Europe as they are both competing at the ABN Amro World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, the first ATP 500 event of the year.
Both Canadians are seeded, Auger-Aliassime third and Shapovalov fifth, in the strong draw.
Auger-Aliassime, who opens against qualifier Egor Gerasimov, could face an early test in round two where he would face either Andy Murray or Montpellier champion Bublik. He is in the same quarter as Cameron Norrie, who the Canadian has beaten twice in the last four months including at the ATP Cup in January, and finds himself in the bottom half of the draw with second seed Andrey Rublev.
Shapovalov has a slightly cleaner start, although he could face the tricky home favourite Botic van de Zandschulp in round two after a qualifier in the first, but could have his hands full with fourth seed Hubert Hurkacz in the quarter-finals. He is in the top half with Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Adios Juan
The focus of the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires this week will not be on any of the top seeds, but on wildcard Juan Martin del Potro, who announced that he will retire after the event.
The 2009 US Open champion, whose career has been marred by injuries, opens against sixth seed Frederico Delbonis, is in the same quarter as fourth seed Fabio Fognini, and same half as top seed Casper Ruud.
The Dallas Open is, fittingly, all about the Americans as seven of the eight seeds are from the host nation and 13 direct entry and wildcard spots belong to American players. Taylor Fritz is the top seed.
Canada’s Vasek Pospisil is the top seed in qualifying for the Dallas Open.
The women return this week with a strong draw at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy, with a pair of Top 10 players, Maria Sakkari and Anett Kontaveit, leading the field.
Under the Radar
A week after winning the title in Cancun, Stacey Fung followed it up by reaching the semi-finals of another W15 event in the same city.
The focus for the Canadians on the ITF circuit this week is once again in Cancun, with seven Canadian women, including recent Canadian Billie Jean King Cup team members Rebecca Marino, Francoise Abanda and Carol Zhao, competing.
Steven Diez is the lone Canadian competing on the ATP Challenger Tour this week in Bengaluru, India.
You can follow the Canadians in action every week here.
