CANADIAN OPEN: As the ATP Tour continues on its travels around North America the next stop is a big one. All of the world’s best will be in action at the Canadian Open in the ATP Masters 1000 series, with the event offering up 1000 points towards the ATP rankings.
Carlos Alcaraz – World number one
There is little left to say about Carlos Alcaraz that hasn’t been said already – world number one, 2022 US Open Champion, and 2023 Wimbledon Champion, all at the age of just 20.
Alcaraz has had the 2023 of dreams after reaching milestone after milestone, including his 100th career win, 10th ATP Tour title, and a maiden Wimbledon victory, with the 20-year-old Spaniard showing absolutely no signs of slowing down.
Alcaraz won the US Open last year and he will be determined to retain his crown and really start to kick on when it comes to picking up Grand Slams. The Canadian Open is a massive tournament in itself and the Spaniard could cement his position as world number one with a win here. It will certainly take something special to stop him.
Daniil Medvedev – Reclaiming the crown
Daniil Medvedev has been one of the very top players on the tour for years now and currently sits third in the world rankings, having held the number one spot as recently as last year before Carlos Alcaraz blew the tour away.
Medvedev is on good form coming off the back of a run to the semi-final stage at Wimbledon this year, and the Russian has also picked up five titles on the ATP Tour. The most notable of these victories came at the Miami Open, which is another 1000 Master Series tournament and also played on the blue hard courts of North America.
With victory here in 2021 already under his belt, Medvedev will certainly have another final in his sights and a win would boost his chances of reclaiming his US Open crown, which he likewise won back in 2021.
Casper Ruud – Mastering the Masters
Casper Ruud is one of the best young players in the next generation of tennis stars, and at 24 years old has now fully established himself as one of the dominant forces on the tour, currently sitting fourth in the world rankings.
Ruud has an impressive 10 ATP Tour titles but just one of those has come in 2023. He has bounced back to form since then in reaching the French Open Final, but his performance which saw him exit Wimbledon in the second round was underwhelming.
The Norwegian is still young and consistency will come with experience but a win here to secure a first victory in the Masters 1000 Series could do his confidence a world of good and set him in good stead for a first Grand Slam title at the US Open this year, having lost out to Carlos Alcaraz in the final last year.
Hubert Hurkacz – Back for more
Hubert Hurkacz just sneaks into he seedings for this year’s Canadian Open as the 16th and final seed, but the Polish star could easily outperform that ranking like he did last year when reaching the final.
Hurkacz has a brilliant record in ATP Tour finals winning six out of the seven that he has made, with his only loss coming here last year. The world number 17 is a brilliant hard court player and thrives in North America, with his most notable performance coming in his Masters 1000 Series victory at the Miami Open in 2021.
Hurkacz has never made it past the second round at the US Open despite his hard court success on the ATP Tour and an overturning of last year’s final loss here could see him build some good momentum, heading into what he will hope to be his best performance at Flushing Meadows to date.
