At the turn of the National Bank Open, five Canadians were in action on the opening weekend of the Cincinnati Open.
A majority of Canucks opened up the tournament with a win, but a pair were stunned as their time in the Queen City came to an end.
Here’s what you need to know.
In Case You Missed It: Shapovalov, Fernandez Ousted in Opening Match
Following opening-match losses in their home tournament, Denis Shapovalov and Leylah Annie Fernandez were stunned in the second round of the Cincinnati Open.
No. 24 seed Shapovalov began the tournament against Italian Luca Nardi on Sunday, losing 7-6(5), 3-6, 4-6.
The Canadian No. 2 was on the wrong end of an early break in the third game as the 26-year-old was under some decent pressure in the first set. At 3-5, Shapovalov faced another break point but survived a near 13-minute game to eventually hold.
With Nardi serving for the set in the ensuing game, four unforced errors by the Italian No. 9 handed the Canadian the crucial break.
In the tiebreak, Shapovalov didn’t allow Nardi to string together two-straight points as the Richmond Hillian won four points on return to take the opening set.
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Early breaks were the difference over the second and third. Nardi broke in Shapovalov’s second service game of each set and also served well, winning 80 per cent of his first-serve points and saving five break points.
Shapovalov committed 59 unforced errors in the loss as the Canadian’s big event losing skid extended to three matches.
As for Fernandez, her trip back south of the border was not as successful as her win at the Mubadala Citi Open in Washington a few weeks ago. The Canadian No. 2 lost 3-6, 3-6 against Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in the Cincinnati Open second round on Saturday.
Fernandez lost serve to drop the opener at 3-5 then was broken in her first service game of the second set. The Lavalloise managed to break back but Bouzas Maneiro broke again at 3-2 as the Spaniard just needed to hold the rest of the way, which she did.
No Canadians remain in the women’s singles draw in Cincinnati after Victoria Mboko withdrew from the tournament following her historic triumph in Montreal.
What to Watch: Diallo Set for Biggest Match of Career
Beginning his Cincinnati Open run with a straight-sets win over Sebastian Baez on Saturday, Gabriel Diallo is about to face the biggest task of his still young career.
The Montrealer will go up against world No. 1 Jannik Sinner to begin Monday’s night session in the Queen City. Diallo just came off a match against his highest-ranked opponent of his career, world No. 4 Taylor Fritz in the National Bank Open third round last week.
The Canadian No. 3’s biggest win to date was against world No. 16 Grigor Dimitrov in the Madrid Open round of 16 earlier this year. Now, Diallo has the chance to become the first Canadian man to defeat a sitting world No. 1.
Fellow Montrealer Félix Auger-Aliassime was in third round action in Cincinnati earlier on Monday. The Canadian No. 1 defeated Tomas Martin Etcheverry in straight-sets in his opening match on Saturday and earned his best Masters 1000 result of the year with a round of 32 win over Arthur Rinderknech.
Catch Diallo and Auger-Aliassime’s Cincinnati Open third-round results here.
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The lone Canadian woman left in the tournament, Gabriela Dabrowski and her partner Erin Routliffe won a tight two setter in their opening match. The No. 2 seeds begin the day session on Tuesday against Giuliana Olmos and Aldila Sutjiadi.
Under the Radar: Twelve Canadians in W50 Saskatoon Singles Field
The W50 Saskatoon Challenger is set to get underway on Monday with twelve Canadians in the singles draw.
Each half of the bracket has one all-Canadian first-round matchup as Mia Kupres meets Bianca Jolie Fernandez – sister of Leylah Annie – in the top half while No. 7 seed Katherine Sebov faces off against 15-year-old Avery Alexander.
The field features four other Canadian teens – 19-year-olds Scarlett Nicholson and Teah Chavez, 17-year-old Isabella Morton, and 16-year-old Selin Vakalapudi.
The five teenagers will look to follow in the footsteps of Mboko, who won this tournament in 2022 and 2023.
Read also: What Victoria Mboko’s WTA peers are saying about her
In the doubles draw, Alexandra Vagramov looks for her second-straight Canadian title after her triumph in Granby. The New Westminster-native this time teams with fellow Canuck Raphaelle Lacasse, entering the competition as the No. 3 seeds.
You can follow the Canadians in action every week here.
Feature Photo: Peter Power
