Something about the summer agrees with Gabriela Dabrowski.
2025 has not been the best year for the Canadian doubles star but as has so often been the case throughout her career, she picks up her level in the summer. Now she will head to the US Open with momentum after winning the last big warm-up event in Cincinnati.
Here’s what you need to know.
In Case You Missed It: Dabrowski’s Biggest Win of 2025
Over a year removed from her last WTA 1000 final, Gabriela Dabrowski was back in the winner’s circle on Sunday night, lifting her fifth trophy at that level following a victory alongside Erin Routliffe over Hanyu Guo and Alexandra Panova in the Cincinnati Open final.
Dabrowski and Routliffe had only made it past the second round at a WTA 1000 once in 2025 heading into Cincinnati but they looked much more like the team that won the WTA Finals last November over the last week. They got the job done in the first three rounds to reach their biggest semifinal since the Australian Open in January, where they survived an epic against Lyudmyla Kichenok and Ellen Perez 12-10 in the match tiebreak to reach their biggest final of the season.
The final was actually the second seeds’ most straightforward win of the week as they beat Guo and Panova 6-4, 6-3 to lift their second trophy of the year (WTA 500 in Stuttgart in April).
Jannik Sinner was the bane of the Canadian men’s singles players’ existence in Cincinnati, taking out both Gabriel Diallo and Félix Auger-Aliassime.
Diallo, who beat Sebastian Baez in his opening match, pushed the world No. 1 hard in the second set but could not extend the match, dropping the decision 6-2, 7-6(6).
Despite his strong showings all season at the 250 and 500 levels, Auger-Aliassime had not made it past the last sixteen at a Masters 1000 or Grand Slam event since Madrid in May 2024. He finally got into a big quarter-final in Cincinnati with back-to-back wins over Frenchmen, Arthur Rinderknech then Benjamin Bonzi, before he too ran into the brick wall that is Sinner. The Italian won 6-0, 6-2.
Denis Shapovalov and Leylah Annie Fernandez both lost their opening matches in the first few days of the event.
What to Watch: Fernandez Returns to Monterrey
Leylah Annie Fernandez returns to her most successful tournament this week, looking to recapture the momentum from her Washington win at the WTA 500 event in Monterrey, Mexico.
The Lavalloise is a two-time champion in Monterrey, winning back-to-back titles there in 2021, her first tour-level title, and 2022. Her last appearance at the event was her 2022 title win, meaning she enters this year’s event on a 10-match winning streak in Northern Mexico.
This time around, she is the seventh seed and will open her campaign against Jacqueline Cristian. She would face either Rebecca Sramkova or Victoria Rodriguez in the second round, with top seed Emma Navarro looming in the quarter-finals.
Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe are also competing in Monterrey, where they are the top seeds in the doubles.
Read also: Victoria Mboko’s Historic Montreal Title Run By the Numbers
Gabriel Diallo is the lone Canadian man in a tour-level main draw this week. He is seeded fourth at the ATP 250 event in Winston-Salem. He has a first-round bye and will meet either Raphael Collignon or Nishesh Basavareddy in his opening match. He could face Hamad Medjedovic or 15th seed Jacob Fearnley in the third round, with No. 8 Alexander Muller or No. 9 Giovanny Mpetshi Perricard potentially waiting in the quarter-finals.
Under the Radar: Draxl, Galarneau on US Open Collision Course
Two Canadian men are in qualifying at the US Open this week, but only one can make it into the main draw.
Liam Draxl, the seventh seed in qualies, and Alexis Galarneau were drawn into the same section of the qualifying draw and are projected to meet in the third round. Draxl starts against Kyrian Jacquet, while Galarneau kicks off his bid against 19th seed Dino Prizmic.
Despite there being five Canadian women in qualifying, they managed to avoid each other in the draw.
Marina Stakusic, Carson Branstine, Rebecca Marino, Carol Zhao, and Cadence Brace are all competing in qualifying. Branstine, Marino, and Zhao all play seeds in the first round.
Canada did not have a champion last week on the ITF Tour but had two close calls. On home soil in Saskatoon, Raphaelle Lacasse and Alexandra Vagramov reached the doubles final, but were beaten in a match tiebreak by Saki Imamura and Hiroko Kuwata.
On the ATP Challenger Tour in Barranquilla, Colombia, Dan Martin reached the doubles final with Taha Baadi, but they were beaten in straight sets by Benjamin Kittay and Cristian Rodriguez.
You can follow the Canadians in action every week here.
Feature Photo : @CincyTennis
