Shapovalov, Raonic headline Montreal wild cards
The National Bank Open Presented by Rogers has awarded four wild cards to Canadian players seeking to make an impact in Montreal. Denis Shapovalov, Milos Raonic, Vasek Pospisil and Gabriel Diallo will join fellow Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime, who gained direct entry through his ranking of No. 19 in the PIF ATP Rankings, in the main draw. The hard-court event will be held from 6-12 August.
Denis Shapovalov
Current PIF ATP Ranking: No. 139
Career High: No. 10 (2020)
Best Result at Canadian Open: SF (2017, l. to Alexander Zverev)
Shapovalov will hope a return to Montreal, the setting for his semi-final run in 2017, will help him in his rise back up the PIF ATP Rankings. The 25-year-old, who beat Rafael Nadal en route to the last four seven years ago, missed the second half of last season through injury but has made steady progress this year. The Canadian earned a hard-court win against Stefanos Tsitsipas at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Miami and recently reached the third round at Wimbledon. The former Top 10 star is still alive this week in Washington, where he is in the third round.
Milos Raonic
Current PIF ATP Ranking: No. 177
Career High: No. 3 (2016)
Best Result at Canadian Open: Final (2013, l. to Rafael Nadal)
The 33-year-old is a former finalist in Montreal, falling to Rafael Nadal in 2013. The Canadian, who has reached quarter-finals in Rotterdam and ‘s-Hertogenbosch this season, broke the record for the most aces in a three-set match, according to Infosys ATP Stats, earlier this year at The Queen’s Club. Raonic hit 47 aces in a tight three-set victory over Cameron Norrie and will hope his serve is firing at full capacity on home soil in Canada.
[ATP APP]Gabriel Diallo
Current PIF ATP Ranking: No. 148
Career High: No. 129 (2024)
Best result at the Canadian Open: R2 (2023, l. to Alex de Minaur)
Diallo will be aiming to build upon his success at last year’s edition of the Canadian Open, where he defeated World No. 21 Dan Evans 7-6 (4), 7-5. The 22-year-old will hope to extend his strong run of form this year, which has seen him climb to a career-high of No. 129 in the PIF ATP Rankings, qualify for his maiden grand slam appearance at Roland Garros and win an ATP Challenger Tour title in Chicago without dropping a set. The six-foot-eight Canadian exploits his huge frame, making his serve his greatest asset.
Vasek Pospisil
Current PIF ATP Ranking: No. 616
Career High: No. 25 (2014)
Best result at the Canadian Open: Semi-final (2013, l. to Milos Raonic)
Pospisil is familiar with prospering as a wild card; at 23 years old he enjoyed a stellar run as a wild card at the 2013 Canadian Open, beating Tomas Berdych en route to the semi-finals, where he lost in a third set tie-break to Raonic. Pospisil has not played a tour-level match since Toronto last year.
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