Chris Oddo | Monday, August 4, 2025
In the Class 1000 event in Canada this week, there are still a handful of household names in the mix ahead of the quarterfinals, with some newbies ready for a big splash.
And the four-time major champions have not achieved much success in the biggest recent event.
Let’s take a look at some of the players in Canada over the next three days.
Alex Michelsen
The 20-year-old American has reached his Virgin Masters quarterfinals, the first three Americans in the Masters event since India Wells in 2004: Michelson, Taylor Fritz and Ben Sheldon.
Today, Michelsen will face Karen Khachanov in Toronto as he bids to become the youngest American in the Masters event since Andy Roddick won the 2003 championship. Michelsen will finish 28th in the live rankings and, if he wins, will be the first player born in 2004 to enter the Masters semi-finals.
Clara Tauson
The 22-year-old Dane has beaten two top five players in 2024. She has now reached the second WTA 1000 quarterfinals and has reached a new career-high ranking of 17 in the live rankings. She will face Madison Keys on Tuesday.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgrxftdwqo0
Victoria Mboko
For the youngest remaining player this week in Montreal and the last Canadian in both cases, it’s gravy as 18-year-old wildcard Victoria Mboko faces Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in the semifinal Monday night.
Mboko made his debut, and he beat Coco Gauff to her first WTA 1000 quarterfinals. The same goes for Bouzas Maneiro, both players are bidding for their first Tour semifinals.
Ben Sheldon
Ben Shelton, 22, has reached the semi-finals in Major, but so far, he has not competed in the Masters. He will have the chance to achieve the feat on Tuesday when he meets Toronto’s Alex de Minaur in his first meeting.
Of the eight remaining men in Toronto, only the Americans (Michelson and Sheldon) have not yet reached the Masters final.
Naomi Osaka
Is it time for the four-time Grand Slam champion to shine again in Montreal? Naomi Osaka, along with new coach Tomasz Wiktorowski, will be on the helm of the first Class 1000 semifinal in Miami since 2022.
The former No. 1 predecessor passed Anastasija Sevastova within 49 minutes on Sunday and will face former champion Elina Svitolina on Tuesday.
Of the eight remaining players in the Montreal draw, only four have previously won the championship in the 1000th class: Madison Keith, Elena Rebakina, Osaka and Svetolina
