Fans who visited the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers Sunday received a special treat when they were able to watch not just tennis, but stars from the ATP and NHL on the same court together.

The athletes gathered on Court 1 for the tournament’s annual ball hockey game, pitting ATP players against ice hockey stars. Casper Ruud, Hubert Hurkacz Sebastian Korda, Emil Ruusuvuori, Alexis Galarneau, Harri Heliovaara and Jan Zielinski lost 4-1 to the professional hockey players.

“It was fun again. I had to do it. I was in Montreal [last year and played in the game]. I think next year we need to mix the teams. It’s too unfair!” Ruusuvuori said. “It was great. It feels like the people also enjoyed it and us, too. They were great guys. We just had fun, it was good. “

Casper Ruud” />
^{Photo Credit: Peter Powers/National Bank Open}
The NHL players who participated were Nazem Kadri, Ryan McLeod, Anthony Cirelli, Quinton Byfield and Hockey Hall of Fame Doug Gilmour.

Byfield, a centre for the Los Angeles Kings who was the second overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, enjoyed spending time with tennis players.

“I respect how long some of those matches go. They don’t get too much rest, stops,” Byfield said. “Their cardio is crazy, so I really respect all of them. Respect them coming out here and playing a different sport, trying it out.”

NHL 🤝 ATP

The NHL defeated the ATP in ball hockey at the @NBOtoronto! 🏒 pic.twitter.com/5WOCF0sJ01

— NHL (@NHL) August 6, 2023

From spending time in Florida training, Ruud has become a Tampa Bay Lightning fan. It was a cool experience for the Norwegian to compete against two-time Stanley Cup champion and Lightning standout Cirelli.

“Anthony Cirelli, he’s a player that I’ve watched for many years. Him, [Steven] Stamkos, [Nikita] Kucherov, they all seem like great guys,” Ruud said. “I’ve been to a couple of games and I would love to go again in the future, it’s just difficult with all the travel, but I’ll catch a Bolts game again in the future.”

Daniil Medvedev has won 18 of his 20 tour-level titles on hard courts, so it is safe to say the World No. 3 is happy to be starting his hard-court swing this week at the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers in Toronto.

“I love to play all these tournaments, I played them very well many times. But it’s a small pressure because I know that I want to do well here,” Medvedev said in his pre-tournament press conference. “So it’s a little bit of pressure where I’ll have to cope with it and to try to go through it. I feel like I have done it many times in my career, but it’s going to be here again and again. So I have to deal with it.”

Medvedev has enjoyed plenty of success in Canada. The last time the men’s event was held in Toronto, Medvedev won, and in 2019 he reached his first ATP Masters 1000 final in Montreal. On his Toronto debut in 2018, he made the third round as a qualifier.

“It feels amazing. I love this tournament. I remember actually playing well, even [five] years ago, I lost to Zverev, but I passed qualies, beat Felix. It was a crazy match, so very good memories so far from Toronto,” Medvedev said. “It’s actually the first time I’m staying in the city. The two times I’ve been here I was staying uptown. And actually I played in Toronto, I won in Toronto, but I didn’t know how Toronto is as a city.

“So now I get to know it. I like it. [I am] enjoying my time here and of course getting ready for for the first match.”

Seeded second this week, Medvedev will open his tournament against home favourite Vasek Pospisil or Italian qualifier Matteo Arnaldi. Medvedev will take the court with plenty of confidence knowing he has already won hard-court titles this year in Rotterdam, Doha, Dubai and Miami.

“I’m really happy because that’s just my favorite surface, so I feel great on it. I feel like my game suits it very well, I feel it even [in] practice,” Medvedev said. “And this doesn’t mean everything, you can still lose. In a way it’s easy to lose. There are so many players that want to win.

“But I love to play on hard courts. My body feels the best on it. So this is very important. I feel like on clay and grass, I have more things concerning my body like I would have pain here, there, probably because I would do some shots not in a good way or something like this. On hard courts I feel very fluid. So really happy. And let’s see how it goes.”

Medvedev on Saturday practised with top seed Carlos Alcaraz in a well-attended session inside Sobeys Stadium. It is not often fans get to see the top two players on the same court at a tournament until the final.

“For sure, we’re not going to practise too often because hopefully we can play finals, semi-finals and more to come like two times this year already,” Medvedev said. “So usually you don’t try this every day with your rivals, but it can happen once, twice, three times per year. And it was again [a] great practice. I think we both enjoyed it. “

For now Medvedev will focus on the first match in front of him. That is the attitude that has helped him earn six Masters 1000 titles in the past.

“I’m sure I can do well here,” Medvedev said. “But for this I will need to play good tennis.”

Two weeks after he played in his first ATP Tour final in Newport, 18-year-old Alex Michelsen has announced that he will turn pro and forgo his college eligibility. The #NextGenATP American, who currently stands at a career-high No. 134 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, was committed to play college tennis at the University of Georgia.

“This was not an easy decision to make, especially because of the incredible opportunity that awaited me at the University of Georgia,” Michelsen wrote Sunday in an Instagram post. He went on to thank the UGA coaches as well as his many personal coaches over the years, adding that he is looking forward to his new journey on the ATP Tour.

Long-time Georgia head coach Manuel Diaz also released a statement in support of Michelsen’s decision: “He has put himself in a phenomenal position, especially over the last few months,” Diaz said. “This is simply too great of an opportunity for Alex to pass up, and we will continue to cheer him on as he takes these next steps in his career.”

After beginning the 2023 season outside the Top 500, Michelsen’s success this season on the ATP Challenger Tour culminated in a title last month in Chicago. He backed that up the following week by reaching his first tour-level final in Newport, where he beat former Georgia star John Isner in the semis.

Michelsen is in seventh place in the Pepperstone ATP Live Next Gen Race, putting him in a strong position to make his Milan debut this November at the Next Gen ATP Finals. The California native is two places behind countryman Ben Shelton, who turned pro last summer after winning the 2022 NCAA singles title as a Florida Gator.

Daniel Evans won his second ATP Tour title on Sunday at the Mubadala Citi DC Open with a rain-interrupted victory against Tallon Griekspoor. The British 12th seed won his first ATP 500 crown — the biggest triumph of his career — with a 7-5, 6-3 result, fuelled by late surges in each set.

Now 2-2 in tour-level finals, the 33-year-old’s Washington run lifted him nine places to No. 21 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, setting him up for a new career high. The first British man to contest the D.C. final since Andy Murray in 2006, Evans’ victory made him the first Briton to win the title since Tim Henman in 2003.

Evans entered the event on a six-match losing streak at tour-level, but he won 10 straight sets on the American hard courts after losing the opener against Gregoire Barrere in the first round. He also knocked out second seed Frances Tiafoe and fifth seed Grigor Dimitrov on the way to the title.

“I wasn’t playing very well and I wasn’t happy with my game. To do the work I’ve done and to stick with it and come through is [amazing],” said Evans. “The last game sort of summed up my week. I got out of trouble and it was an amazing week. I really appreciate all the support.”

In the final, Evans took his fourth break point of the opening set to win it 7-5, but his momentum was halted at 2-2 in the second set when rain and lightning suspended play for more than 90 minutes.

Asked how he kept his calm during the break, Evans credited his team and gave a glimpse into his camaraderie with his Dutch opponent: “Tallon was in the changing room as well, so it was quite light hearted. It was nice,” he said.

When the players returned, the match continued to be played on the Briton’s terms, despite Griekspoor’s best efforts to dictate with big serves and forehands. Evans finished with 26 winners and just eight unforced errors, winning 16 of his 17 net points in the one-hour, 41-minute match.

He did not face a break point until he saved four in his final service game. Evans fought off one of the Dutchman’s break chances with a daring backhand passing shot and clinched victory just before the skies opened again, later delivering his trophy speech under a light drizzle.

Griekspoor was bidding to become the fourth player to win a third tour-level title this season, alongside Carlos Alcaraz (6), Daniil Medvedev (5) and Novak Djokovic (3). Instead, the Pune and ‘s-Hertogenbosch champion remains one of six players with two singles trophies in 2023. Like Evans, he will also leave D.C. at a new high in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, at World No. 26.

Argentines Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni won their third Match Tie-break this week at the Mubadala Citi DC Open to clinch the doubles title on Sunday at the ATP 500 event.

The unseeded champions earned a 6-7(4), 6-2, 10-6 win against Americans Mackenzie McDonald and Ben Shelton to improve to 4-0 this season in ATP Tour finals. Their four tour-level title draws them level with Roland Garros champs Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek for most doubles crowns this season. The triumph also lifted them two places into the all-important eighth spot in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Team Rankings, giving them an inside track to qualify for what would be their Nitto ATP Finals debut this November.

“We are working hard here. We know each other. I think this is important when you play doubles,” Gonzalez said post-match. “We have confidence, we trust in us. I hope to keep it the same way.”

Already titlists in Cordoba, Rio de Janeiro and Barcelona this season, Gonzalez/Molteni claimed D.C. glory with a string of clutch performances in the American capital. They won four tie-breaks on the week in addition to their three Match Tie-breaks, and they saved both break points against them in the final.

First all-Argentine champions in tournament history 🇦🇷🏆

Maximo Gonzalez & Andres Molteni | #MubadalaCitiDCOpen pic.twitter.com/19g2luMQ4B

— Mubadala Citi DC Open (@mubadalacitidc) August 6, 2023

The first Argentine champions in D.C. tournament history stormed back into the title match after missing out on a set point on return at 6-5 in opening set and dropping the opening tie-break. But after a dominant second set in which they converted on two of seven break chances, they built a 6/2 lead in the Match Tie-break and never looked back.

Gonzalez, 40, improved to 16-6 in tour-level doubles finals, while the 35-year-old Molteni is now 15-7. Neither man had won four titles in a season before. Together, they are 5-0 in tour-level finals.

McDonald and Shelton were denied their first ATP Tour doubles title as a pair, while Shelton was competing in his first tour-level final across singles and doubles.

One of the perks of competing on the ATP Tour is that players are able to visit iconic places around the world. That was especially true at this week’s Mubadala Citi DC Open.

Several stars were given the opportunity to take a tour of The White House, home of the President of the United States. Many of them had only seen the landmark in the news or in television and movies.

Among the players who made the trip were Gregoire Barrere, Liam Broady, Maximo Gonzalez, Adrian Mannarino, Fabrice Martin, Andres Molteni and Hugo Nys.

Barrere even made a joke on social media when he wrote in French that Mannarino, the recent Newport champion, held a press conference in The White House Briefing Room demanding a year only played on grass.

Conf de press de @AdrianMannarino après le titre à Newport demandant une année que sur gazon ! pic.twitter.com/DDrqyFPFp1

— Gregoire Barrere (@GregBarrere) August 3, 2023

Doubles partners Jamie Murray and Michael Venus also received a Tour. Fellow Murray, Andy Murray, was given a look at The White House in 2015. Judy Murray, Jamie and Andy’s mother, posted that it was an “extra special” day.

Jamie Murray and Judy Murray visit during a visit to The White House.” />
^{Photo: Murray Family}
There were other reasons besides the tennis and visiting The White House that players enjoyed their time in Washington. Some took in the local museums. Taro Daniel joined Hailey Baptiste at Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, where they posed with Althea Gibson’s 1957 Wimbledon kit.

Taro Daniel and Hailey Baptiste pose with Althea Gibson’s 1957 Wimbledon kit at the National Museum of American History.” />

The best players in the world are set for the sixth ATP Masters 1000 tournament of the year at the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers in Toronto.

World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz and defending Toronto champion Daniil Medvedev lead the way at the hard-court event. ATPTour.com looks at 10 storylines to watch over the coming week.

1) Alcaraz’s Toronto Debut: Fresh off his memorable triumph at Wimbledon, Alcaraz will make his Toronto debut. One year ago the Spaniard competed for the first time in Canada, losing his opening match in Montreal to Tommy Paul. Alcaraz will have an opportunity to get off to a better start this edition against Ben Shelton or Bernabe Zapata Miralles. The 20-year-old will pursue his third Masters 1000 title of the season (Indian Wells and Madrid) and his seventh overall trophy of the year.

2) Medvedev Defending Toronto Champ: The last time this tournament was played in Toronto, Medvedev departed with the trophy. Medvedev completed his run in 2021 by losing just 11 combined games in the semi-final and final. The second seed will try to earn Canadian glory once again this year, when he starts against home favourite Vasek Pospisil or a qualifier.

3) Felix Leads Canadian Charge: The top-ranked Canadian, Felix Auger-Aliassime, leads the home hopes in Toronto as the 10th seed. A player who first competed in Toronto qualifying in 2016 just shy of his 16th birthday, Auger-Aliassime will try to claim his first Masters 1000 title this week on home soil. The 22-year-old, who has struggled in recent months with a knee injury, will face a qualifier in the first round and could play former World No. 1 Andy Murray in the second round.

4) Milos Is Back: Former World No. 3 Milos Raonic will be in action for just the third time since the 2021 Atlanta Open. The Canadian standout played earlier this year at ‘s-Hertogenbosch and Wimbledon, winning a match at each. The three-time Toronto quarter-finalist and 2013 Montreal finalist will try to ride his serve to a deep run at home, starting with his tough opening match against ninth seed Frances Tiafoe.

5) Live Race Heating Up: With only Alcaraz qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals, the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin will begin to heat up, especially with a maximum of 1,000 points up for grabs in Canada. Eighth through 10th places are currently separated by only 215 points. Casper Ruud is in eighth, with recent Atlanta champion Taylor Fritz just 100 points behind him and two-time Nitto ATP Finals titlist Alexander Zverev 115 points behind the American. That leaves plenty of opportunity for shifts in the battle to move into a qualifying position.

6) Tsitsipas’ Time? A finalist in Toronto in 2018 and a semi-finalist in 2021, will this be the year Stefanos Tsitsipas claims the crown in the Canadian city? Tsitsipas arrives in good form after triumphing in Los Cabos for his first title of the season. The fourth seed will begin his tournament against Christopher Eubanks or Gael Monfils.

7) More Stars To Watch: There could be a blockbuster clash between Alcaraz and fifth seed Holger Rune in the quarter-finals if both players make it that far. The Danish star Rune plays Emil Ruusuvuori or a qualifier in the opening round. Seventh seed Jannik Sinner could open against countryman and former Top 10 star Matteo Berrettini. Another player to watch is sixth seed Andrey Rublev, the recent Bastad champion and Wimbledon quarter-finalist.

8) Murray Magic: Murray is a three-time champion at Canada’s Masters 1000 event and in 2010 he emerged victorious in Toronto. That edition, the Scot defeated Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in back-to-back matches without losing a set against either legend to lift the trophy. After showing positive signs in Washington, Murray will try to maintain his momentum when he faces Lorenzo Sonego in the first round.

9) Koolhof/Skupski Lead The Way: Wimbledon champions Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski are the top seeds in the doubles draw. They are in good form after earning victories at ‘s-Hertogenbosch and The All England Club. Koolhof and Skupski will face a tough opening test against 2022 Nitto ATP Finals competitors Lloyd Glasspool and Harri Heliovaara or Hubert Hurkacz and Mate Pavic. Second seeds Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek also claimed major glory this year when they won Roland Garros.

10) Tsitsipas, Rublev Among Singles Stars Playing Doubles: Tsitsipas is competing in the doubles draw with Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Rublev will team with Max Purcell. Other singles stars to watch in doubles include Alex de Minaur/Jannik Sinner and Sebastian Korda/Frances Tiafoe.

Santiago Gonzalez and Edouard Roger-Vasselin dug deep in sweltering Los Cabos on Saturday to claim the title at the Mifel Tennis Open by Telcel Oppo.

The top seeds at the hard-court ATP 250 downed Andrew Harris and Dominik Koepfer 6-4, 7-5 to claim their third tour-level crown of 2023. Gonzalez and Roger-Vasselin failed to serve out the match at 6-4, 5-4 but they responded to dropping serve with an immediate break to love before completing an 84-minute championship-match triumph.

“[The key was] surviving. It was probably one of the toughest weeks for us, to play every day in this weather where it is so humid, so hot,” said home favourite Gonzalez. “Especially today. We played [our previous matches] in the late evening, at nine or 10 p.m, and today was at 5:30 p.m., so it was obviously tough for everyone. [We fought] all the way through the match, so we are very happy to win the title here.”

The 40-year-old Gonzalez is the third Mexican player to win the doubles title in Los Cabos, after Miguel Angel Reyes-Varela in 2018 and Hans Hach Verdugo in 2021.

“It’s very special, obviously. It’s a dream come true for me,” said Gonzalez after lifting his 21st tour-level doubles trophy. “I’d never won an ATP title in Mexico, so to win at home with Eddie is great.”

“I think we know each other very well now, especially as the key moments in a doubles match,” said Roger-Vasselin. “We don’t panic. I think this is one of the main keys to our success, that we are really strong even if we are facing some challenges during the match… I think this is the main reason we have won so many close matches and hopefully we can continue this until the end of the season.”

Gonzalez and Roger-Vasselin are now 33-15 for the year, having also won titles in Marseille and Miami. The pair is fifth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Doubles Teams Rankings as they chase a spot at the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals.

“So far, so good this year,” reflected Gonzalez. “We are happy obviously with this week, but also for the whole season. We keep going for the rest of the year. Our goals are clear. Try to win titles, try to move up the rankings, and hopefully at the end of the year we can make it to Turin.”