There will be a fresh champion in the women’s singles event at the National Bank Open as Jessica Pegula, the two-time defending champion from the United States, was defeated by Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia in a surprising turn of events. Sevastova, aged 35, who was once ranked as high as 11th in the world in 2018, but currently sits at 386th, came back from a set down to beat Pegula, breaking her serve six times out of ten chances.
Pegula’s loss adds to her recent poor form, having exited Wimbledon and the D.C. Open after just one match in July following her opening win against Maria Sakkari of Greece in Montreal. Sevastova will now face Japan’s Naomi Osaka, a former world No. 1, who advanced to the fourth round by defeating Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia 6-2, 6-4, converting six out of nine breakpoint opportunities in just 72 minutes.
In other matches, Clara Tauson of Denmark, seeded 16th, triumphed over Yuliia Starodubtseva of Ukraine 6-3, 6-0 during the daytime session, while Wimbledon champion Iga Swiatek of Poland dominated Eva Lys of Germany 6-2, 6-2 in the night session. Swiatek is set to face Tauson in the next round.
Canadian player Victoria Mboko is the sole Canadian remaining in singles or doubles competitions in Montreal. The 18-year-old rising star from Toronto will face top seed Coco Gauff of the United States in the fourth round after defeating Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic 1-6, 6-3, 6-0.
The National Bank Open introduced a revamped format this year with 96 players over 12 days, where the top 32 seeds received byes to the second round, setting the stage for the final on Thursday.
In the men’s singles event, Canada’s hopes were dashed as Gabriel Diallo of Montreal fell to Taylor Fritz of the United States 6-4, 6-2 in Toronto. Fritz capitalized on early service breaks in each set to secure the victory in one hour and 15 minutes. Diallo, the 27th seed, was the last Canadian remaining in the 96-man singles draw after Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov lost in earlier rounds.
Fritz displayed a more consistent and composed game against Diallo, who struggled to find his rhythm, leading to unforced errors and a lackluster performance. Fritz will now face Jiri Lehecka in the next round.
In other matches, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain, Flavio Cobolli of Italy, Frances Tiafoe of the United States, and Andrey Rublev of Russia secured victories in the third round. The tournament continues through Thursday with a total prize of $9.19 million.