Rafael Nadal has prevailed in Canada in his teens, 20s and 30s, but now looks to accomplish a first for him at this event: successfully defending his title. The top seed and defending champion starts his week off at the Coupe Rogers in Montreal by facing British qualifier Daniel Evans on Wednesday.

“When I get to a tournament, I try to work on my things and work on my game,” said Nadal. “There are many great players here, so I have to just prepare myself as soon as possible and be ready for the action.”

Nadal arrives with a 34-8 record in Canada and has reached at least the quarter-finals in seven of his past nine appearances at this event. The four-time champion faces a tough opening test against a resurgent Evans, who finished runner-up this February in Delray Beach (l. to Albot) and has climbed 140 spots in the ATP Rankings this year.

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Second-seeded Austrian Dominic Thiem kicks off his week against home favourite Denis Shapovalov. Thiem won their lone FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting last year in Acapulco and arrives on a wave of confidence after taking the title last week in Kitzbuhel (d. Ramos-Vinolas).

But the #NextGenATP Canadian thrives on playing in Canada and specifically in Montreal. Shapovalov’s semi-final run two years ago saw him defeat Rafael Nadal and Juan Martin del Potro, and he’ll look to create more Montreal magic on Court Central.

“He’s definitely going to be very confident right now. He’s coming off a win. It’s always tricky to play a guy that’s full confidence, that’s won a lot of matches under his belt,” said Shapovalov. “I’m just going to try to go out there, enjoy myself, put up the best fight I can. I think I do have a chance to win this match. I really believe it.”

Fourth seed and 2018 runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas looks for another big week in Canada when he meets rising Pole Hubert Hurkacz. The #NextGenATP Greek leads his FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry with Hurkacz 3-0, including victories this year in Marseille and Dubai. Tsitsipas used his Toronto run 12 months ago as a springboard to his current career-high ATP Ranking of No. 5.

Fifth-seeded Japanese Kei Nishikori looks to close the gap in his FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry with Richard Gasquet. The Frenchman leads their series 7-3, but Nishikori has won three of their past four matches. Nishikori has enjoyed success in Canada before, finishing runner-up in 2016 (l. to Djokovic) and advancing to the semi-finals in 2015.

Other notable matches include sixth-seeded Russian Karen Khachanov taking on Swiss Stan Wawrinka, #NextGenATP star Felix Auger-Aliassime facing No. 17 seed and 2013 runner-up Milos Raonic in an all-Canadian clash, and seventh-seeded Italian Fabio Fognini squaring off with American qualifier Tommy Paul.

ORDER OF PLAY – WEDNESDAY, 7 August 2019

Court Centrale start 12:00 noon
[1] Rafael Nadal vs [Q] Daniel Evans
NB 2:00 pm
[2] Dominic Thiem vs Denis Shapovalov
NB 6:30 pm
[17] Milos Raonic vs Felix Auger-Aliassime
[7] Fabio Fognini vs [Q] Tommy Paul

Banque Nationale start 12:00 noon
[5] Kei Nishikori vs Richard Gasquet
[8] Daniil Medvedev vs Kyle Edmund
[4] Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Hubert Hurkacz
NB 6:30 pm
[6] Karen Khachanov vs Stan Wawrinka
[WC] Feliciano Lopez / Andy Murray vs Jeremy Chardy / Fabrice Martin

Click here to view the schedule for all other courts.

At Roland Garros, 22-year-old American Tommy Paul was in prime position to spring a stunning upset. The 2015 Paris Boys’ Singles champion was knotted at one set all against 2018 finalist Dominic Thiem, who over the past few years has established himself as one of the best clay-court players in the world.

In the third-set tie-break, Paul took a 4/0 lead. But he’d lose seven of the next eight points to drop the set, ultimately dropping the match in four sets. There were many things going through the American’s head when he walked off the court, but he felt he belonged. He was not out of his element at all.

“One hundred per cent. I was pissed because I should have won the third set,” Paul told ATPTour.com. “There were a lot of things going through my mind after that match, but one of them was definitely that I’m really not far from that level at all. I felt like I could have beaten him that day. I felt like I almost should have beaten him that day.

“It just makes you want to beat him.”

Opportunities on the sport’s biggest stages against the best players in the world don’t come around often. And sometimes, the spotlight that comes with those moments can shine too bright. But the pressure did not faze Paul.

In his mind, performing in that setting against a superstar like Thiem was something he was capable of doing. The former junior World No. 3 believes he has the level to be comfortable in those situations.

“Everybody’s searching for more. I’m obviously searching for more, but I definitely feel like my game is there. I can play with anybody, I know that,” Paul said. “Anyone who watches some of the matches against the top guys can see that, too. I think it’s more just having the experience of playing against them and having those matches.”

Paul qualified for this week’s Coupe Rogers, an ATP Masters 1000 tournament. And he wasted little time in earning a victory in the first round of the main draw, needing only 65 minutes to move past home favourite Brayden Schnur.

After the match, the first thing Paul did was go to the gym. For most of his career, that has not been the norm. In fact, he quickly said, “definitely not”.

“Now I’m travelling with a trainer,” Paul said. “He’s been helping out just these past couple weeks since Atlanta. I still haven’t gotten over the fact that all he does is drink mate. I hate it. But we’ll get over that. I think it’s good, just taking care of my body even when I lose matches, just keep going back to the gym and taking care of my body.”

Nagging injuries have plagued him at moments when he believed he was playing good tennis. The American missed nearly three months earlier this year due to a quad tendon issue. Last season, he dealt with a knee ailment for a majority of the year. Paul knew he had to make a change, because not always doing things “the right way” was beginning to cost him.

“I had a couple pretty annoying injuries that set me out six months at a time. Those weren’t fun and I just made a decision that I want to do everything I can to prevent injuries and keep my body flexible,” Paul said. “That’s part of the reason I have the trainer on the road with me right now and work with physios when I’m on the road.”

Last November, Paul claimed his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title in Charlottesville, Virginia. After defeating Peter Polansky in the final, he knelt down near his chair to reflect on the tough 2018 he endured. Paul won his second Challenger crown in April.

“I’m having fun. When you’re playing well, you’re always having fun. In the gym, it’s not always so fun,” Paul said. “But I’m hanging out with a lot of cool people, having fun off the court, having fun on the court, so it’s good.”

And perhaps most importantly, now at a career-high No. 128 in the ATP Rankings, Paul has been spending more time at tour-level events, having not played a Challenger since the first week of June. He’s starting to build up momentum by stringing matches together at the highest level, last week falling in a tight two-setter against Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Citi Open.

“This is where I want to be. Obviously I’m happy that I’m playing these tournaments… the level from here to Challengers is closer than you think, though,” Paul said. “Of course these guys can play and they’re the best in the world, but everyone can play, even in the Challengers. I’m happy that I’m here.”

Paul is moving closer to joining the ranks of his fellow rising Americans, with close friends Taylor Fritz and Reilly Opelka both having the best seasons of their careers. That too is a motivator for Paul.

“Definitely. Fritz had his breakout a lot earlier. It’s much easier to invest in your career when you break out a lot earlier. He did a really good job with that early. He was very professional right out of juniors. He knew what he wanted and he did it. I’m happy for him and that’s definitely the way he should do it. Reilly was always good about investing in his career when he could. That’s a big thing,” Paul said. “I’m always happy for them, but obviously I want to do that too. I want to win every tournament I play, but when they do well and as long as they’re not beating me, I’m happy that they’re winning at tournaments.”

John Isner is the No. 1 American, and he defeated Paul in a drama-less straight-sets victory two years ago in Cincinnati. But the 15-time ATP Tour champion believes that his countryman has truly grown since.

“I think Tommy is finally starting to figure it all out. I think he’s dealt with a lot of injuries. His confidence has been up and down, but nobody’s ever really doubted his ability or talent. But sometimes it takes a while to figure it out and he’s still so young,” Isner said. “But he’s now 22 years old and he’s finally starting to figure it out on Tour. His talent is immense and he’s got a great game. I think if he keeps on this path, we’re going to be seeing him in a lot of big tournaments for a lot of years to come.”.

Paul has proven he’s capable. Now it’s just about executing, and he’ll have another chance to do so on Wednesday against seventh-seeded Italian Fabio Fognini.

Felix Auger-Aliassime notched his 36^th career match win on Tuesday at the Coupe Rogers, and nearly 10 per cent of those wins have come against his Montreal opponent, countryman Vasek Pospisil.

The 18-year-old Auger-Aliassime, who has a birthday on Thursday, fought off nerves and fed off his home crowd to advance 6-2, 6-7(3), 7-6(3) against the 29-year-old Pospisil, who’s still on the comeback from January back surgery.

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Neither player faced a break point in the decider, but Auger-Aliassime gained momentum after overcoming a 0/30 deficit at 4-4 in the final set. He ran away in the tie-break, improving to 2-1 in Canada when Pospisil lifted a forehand long.

The #NextGenATP Canadian will next meet Canada’s No. 1 Milos Raonic, who reached the 2013 Montreal final. Auger-Aliassime is currently in 11^th place in the ATP Race To London. The top eight will qualify for the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals, to be held 10-17 November.

Argentine Guido Pella scored a 6-4, 7-6(4) upset against 15^th seed David Goffin. The left-handed Pella won the third-most matches on clay this year, but is increasingly showing he can excel on any surface. The 29-year-old reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals last month. He will next meet Moldovan Radu Albot, who beat Gilles Simon of France 6-4, 6-2.

John Isner put a halt to his troubled early tie-break record during the US Open series during a tense three-set win over Jordan Thompson in the first round of the Coupe Rogers in Montreal.

The 12th seed, who had lost three of his four tie-breaks in Atlanta and Washington, defeated Thompson 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(6), closing out the match with his 26th ace. The 6′ 10″ American next plays Chilean Cristian Garin.

Marin Cilic survived 19 aces from American Bradley Klahn to reach the second round with a 6-3, 7-6(7) win in one hour, 38 minutes. The 14th seed, who did not face a break point, will next play Australian lucky loser John Millman, who rallied from a break down in the third set to defeat Spain’s Feliciano Lopez 6-7(4), 7-6(2), 6-3 after two hours and 33 minutes.

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“Bradley was serving really big. I wasn’t expecting him to hold his serve like that,” Cilic said. “He kept the pressure on and it was only decided in a second-set tie-break, so it could have gone his way. I’m glad I played well in crucial moments.” 

British qualifier Daniel Evans came up clutch against recent Atlanta champion Alex de Minaur in a 6-4, 7-6(6) first-round win, saving seven of eight break points faced and converting both break chances on the Australian’s serve. Evans will next confront top seed and defending champion Rafael Nadal. 

There were mixed results for last week’s Abierto de Tenis Mifel presentado por Cinemex finalists. Argentine Diego Schwartzman, who won the ATP 250 tennis tournament, fought past Italian Marco Cecchinato 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 after two hours and 35 minutes. Meanwhile, runner-up Taylor Fritz fell to Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz 6-3, 7-5.

Schwartzman will look to extend his winning streak when he faces 10th-seeded Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut. Hurkacz, 22, will attempt to record his third win over a Top 10 opponent in ATP Masters 1000 action this season (Nishikori in Indian Wells, Thiem in Miami) when he meets 2018 finalist and fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas. The Greek leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 3-0.

Former World No. 1 Andy Roddick retired nearly seven years ago, but the American still keeps a close eye on the sport. He admitted that he was a ‘total fan’ during the Wimbledon final in which Novak Djokovic saved championship points against Roger Federer.

Roddick is also a fan of a player who is first beginning his journey on the ATP Tour: #NextGenATP Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime.

“No one knew who Auger-Aliassime was three years ago and now all of a sudden he looks like the next best prospect,” Roddick said. “I wish he lived a thousand miles further south.”

The 18-year-old is the youngest player in the Top 100 of the ATP Rankings, climbing as high as World No. 21. Before this season, Auger-Aliassime owned only six tour-level wins. He has 29 this year already, including trips to his first three ATP Tour finals (Rio de Janeiro, Lyon, Stuttgart) and his maiden ATP Masters 1000 semi-final in Miami.

But how has Felix managed such a rapid rise at his age?

“Something I look for is easy power. I think most guys on [the ATP] Tour, if they set up and want to hit a ball hard, they can. The really, really great ones — you think of Roger, I think of a guy like Tomas Berdych — it doesn’t look like he’s swinging out of his shoes, but the ball kind of launches off of his racquet. And maybe you can’t see the ball on TV, but you can feel it playing against him,” Roddick said. “Felix seems to have that easy power. When he’s going after a ball, it doesn’t look out of sorts. It looks like the technique is pretty much the same.”

That has also led to consistency in Auger-Aliassime’s results this year. From the start of the Rio Open presented by Claro — an ATP 500 tournament held in February where he made his first ATP Tour final — the Canadian has lost his first match just once in 13 tournaments, advancing to at least the semi-finals five times.

Not only is Felix placed second in the ATP Race To Milan for a spot at the Next Gen ATP Finals in November, but he is also 11th in the ATP Race To London, from which the Top 8 players qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals. With all that in mind, Roddick believes that Auger-Aliassime has nowhere to go but up.

“Things that will improve when you’re young, when you’re 18, movement always gets better, power always becomes more. That’s just going to happen, and he already does both of those things pretty well,” Roddick said. “Even looking at his serve from last summer, I’ll get the statistics wrong, but I want to say it looked like a 115, 120 serve and now all of a sudden you look at him this summer and it’s looking like 125, 130, starting to look like a weapon, and that should be scary for a lot of people.”

Auger-Aliassime currently ranks 11th on the ATP Tour this year in aces with 383. He is also inside the Top 20 in first-serve points won on the season at a clip of more than 74 per cent.

But Roddick says that he likes a lot about the #NextGenATP star’s game. The American sees some common threads with current and recent legends of the sport, specifically in his footwork.

“He moves well already. If you look at the guys that win early, you’re looking at a Hewitt or a Roger or a Rafa, all those guys moved well from a young age,” Roddick said. “That’s certainly not a recessing asset. You get to 21, 22, 23 years old [and it only gets better].”

Did You Know?
Auger-Aliassime is set to face countryman Vasek Pospisil in the first round. The teen has won both of their previous FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings, which came in the first round at last year’s BNP Paribas Open and this season at Wimbledon.

Alexander Zverev and Andrey Rublev prevailed in a wild day of doubles at the Coupe Rogers in Montreal, moving into the second round over third seeds Mate Pavic and Bruno Soares 6-3, 7-6(3). All three seeded teams who took the court on Monday fell at their opening hurdle.

Robin Haase and Wesley Koolhof scored the biggest upset of the day by defeating top seeds and reigning Wimbledon champions Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah 7-5, 7-6(4). Haase/Koolhof rallied from 2-5 down in both sets, saving two set points in the opening set and three set points in the second set before going on to prevail in one hour and 30 minutes.

Roland Garros champions Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies completed the hat trick of seeded players falling on Day 1. The Germans advanced with a 7-5, 4-6, 10-6 victory against eighth seeds Nikola Mektic and Franko Skugor.

French duo Jeremy Chardy and Fabrice Martin saved a set point in the first-set tie-break en route to defeating Canadians Felix Auger-Aliassime and Vasek Pospisil 7-6(7), 7-5. Aussies Alex de Minaur and Jordan Thompson rounded out the day by taking out Hubert Hurkacz and John Isner 6-4, 7-6(3).

Andy Murray and Feliciano Lopez headline doubles action on Tuesday when they face second seeds Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo. Murray/Lopez took the title in their debut outing together this June at the Fever-Tree Championships (d. Ram/Salisbury).

There’s plenty of buzz surrounding Canadian stars Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov throughout the world, and that excitement is no more apparent than in Montreal this week at the Coupe Rogers. Earlier this year, the #NextGenATP sensations both made the semi-finals at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Miami, and they have each cracked the Top 25 of the ATP Rankings.

But on Monday afternoon, the crowd inside Court Central roared to life as the stadium’s emcee read out another player’s resumé, which includes a run to the 2013 final here in Montreal. It was the first main draw match of the tournament, but the fans were plenty energetic in their support of this 6’5” right-hander, who boomed 16 aces en route to a 6-4, 6-4 win against Lucas Pouille.

While the hype surrounding Auger-Aliassime and Shapovalov has clearly been warranted by their results, it was former World No. 3 Milos Raonic who led the surge of Canadian tennis nearly a decade ago, breaking onto the ATP Tour in 2011. The 28-year-old says that the love his home nation shows him never gets old.

“It’s exciting. It’s one of the most exciting parts about this whole journey. Obviously being here, it’s definitely magnified in that perspective. But I think there’s a lot of Canadians and a lot of support throughout other parts of the world,” Raonic said. “That has changed significantly from 2011, when I broke through, to how it is now, how many Canadians come out all over the world to watch and support tennis.

“I think once tennis is done for me, that’s probably the thing I’ll miss the most.”

Raonic has consistently shown his ability to compete against the best players in the world, lifting eight ATP Tour trophies, finishing inside the year-end Top 20 of the ATP Rankings six times, and advancing to at least the quarter-finals at nine Grand Slam championships. So although Auger-Aliassime and Shapovalov are certainly helping the tennis boom in this country, Raonic was one of the keys to getting it started.

“It’s nice to have more and more people engaged throughout the whole calendar year,” Raonic said. “I think generally for the growth of tennis in Canada… now with different broadcasters picking up the tennis, to have that kind of consistency of a Canadian contingency on TV week in, week out, I think that’s all very healthy, very positive. To have two young guys with very high prospects, as well, it’s nothing but positive for Canadian tennis.”

When Auger-Aliassime was only 12 years old, Raonic made the championship match here at the Coupe Rogers, defeating countryman Vasek Pospisil in the semi-finals. Two Canadians making their way to the bookend of such a big tournament was inspiring to an entire nation’s youth hoping to one day fill those shoes.

“I grew up watching him. He’s been great. I think he gave us a lot of belief that it was possible,” Auger-Aliassime said. “I think for the country also it was great when he would play Davis Cup. He was a solid player, just like Vasek. I think these guys played well every time they play for the country. That was good to see.”

Pospisil has not yet reached the same heights as Raonic since their run at the Coupe Rogers, climbing as high as World No. 25. But the 29-year-old has been inspired by his compatriot’s efforts nonetheless.

“He’s obviously done a lot of things right over the years to stay at the high level. We were rivals through juniors. We’re the same age. I know Milos extremely well. I think for sure his original push up the [ATP] Rankings definitely motivated me,” said Pospisil, who came up about a year after Raonic. “I’m sure in some ways that was motivating. I think it had a positive effect on my career, as well. So I think… he’s done really well. Definitely helped Canadian tennis, for sure.”

Recently-retired Canadian tennis legend Daniel Nestor, who won 1,062 tour-level doubles matches, has not lost sight of Raonic’s accomplishments during this #NextGenATP Canadian surge. Although he’s thrilled with the buzz surrounding the sport in this country, Nestor knows a lot of it has to do with Raonic, too.

“I think he’s doing really well. I think we’re all amazed at how well he does considering how little he plays… every time he plays he seems to be in the semi-finals or doing fairly well,” Nestor said. “I think he’s obviously got goals of winning a Grand Slam… so I think if people have taken him for granted, that’s too bad because I think he still has the best chance of all of them to win a Grand Slam for now.”

This Masters 1000 event alternates cities between Montreal (odd years) and Toronto (even years). And perhaps surprisingly, Raonic had not won a match in Montreal since his 2013 final run entering Monday. But the veteran didn’t show any weight on his shoulders to move to 4-1 in his FedEx ATP Head2Head series against Pouille.

“It wasn’t something on my mind by any means. I’m aware of it. I remember my matches quite well. So it’s not something that I just miraculously forgot,” Raonic said. “It was good. It was a positive thing for me. It was a tough first round against Lucas, who beat me in the quarters this year in Australia. To come out, to play well, to sort of get the wheels going in a positive way, I have to be happy with that.”

All of Canada was, too.

It was as if it was 2017 all over again. Denis Shapovalov had the Montreal crowd roaring again on Monday night during his Coupe Rogers opener.

The #NextGenATP Canadian, who made his breakthrough two years ago at the ATP Masters 1000 event, brought some of his best tennis to snap a five-match losing streak and advance 6-3, 7-5 against Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert.

Shapovalov broke four times, including in the final games of both sets as the 20-year-old ramped up pressure against the serve-and-volleying right-hander. Shapovalov was swinging freely from the back of the court and never missing a moment to engage the red-and-white faithful in the stands.

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He donated eight double faults – and 32 unforced errors – but lost his serve only once, at the start the second set. But Shapovalov broke back immediately.

The left-hander is looking to reignite his 2019 at home. Shapovalov made his third Masters 1000 semi-final in March at the Miami Open presented by Itau (l. to Federer), but since, he hasn’t won two consecutive matches.

He will next meet World No. 4 Dominic Thiem, who’s also trying to end an unfavourable streak. Thiem has never won a match at the Canadian Masters 1000 (0-5). He won his third ATP Tour title of the season on Saturday at the clay-court Generali Open in Kitzbuhel.

Two years ago in Montreal, Shapovalov made his first Masters 1000 semi-final, beating Juan Martin del Potro and Rafael Nadal en route to becoming the youngest Masters 1000 quarter-finalist and semi-finalist in series history (since 1990). Shapovalov, a wild-card entry and No. 143 at the time, captivated the Canadian crowd with his fist pumps, shouts of “Come on!” and aesthetically-pleasing game.

Save for his his bumpy ride of late, the left-hander has steadily climbed the ATP Rankings since then, reaching a career-best No. 20 on 1 April.

In other action, 10th seed Roberto Bautista Agut went three-for-three on break points against Aussie Bernard Tomic and advanced 6-3, 6-2. The Spaniard will next meet Los Cabos titlist Diego Schwartzman or Italian Marco Cecchinato. Frenchman Richard Gasquet ousted countryman Benoit Paire 7-6(2), 6-4 and awaits fifth seed Kei Nishikori.

Did You Know?
Two years ago, Shapovalov also became the lowest-ranked Masters 1000 semi-finalist since 2003 (No. 191 Pavel).