Emma Raducanu has maintained strong form on hard courts as she progresses through the Canadian Open in Montreal. Following a semi-final appearance in Washington last week, Raducanu secured a 6-2, 6-4 victory over world No. 37 Peyton Stearns in the second round on Wednesday. She began her campaign at the WTA 1000 event with a win over her good friend Elena-Gabriela Ruse by the same scoreline.

Raducanu’s next opponent is Amanda Anisimova, the recently crowned world No. 7 and Wimbledon finalist, marking Raducanu’s biggest test yet this tournament. The two are close friends and have met twice before, both times on hard courts, with Raducanu leading the head-to-head 2-0. Their first encounter came in the second round of the Australian Open earlier this year, where Raducanu prevailed 6-3, 7-5 after recovering from breaks in both sets. The pair next met at the Miami Open, with Raducanu winning decisively 6-1, 6-3.

Ahead of their initial meeting, Raducanu remarked, “Usually when we’re hanging out, we’re not talking about tennis. I think it’s good to keep it that way. I think we’re going to be playing each other many more times in the future. This is the first time. I think she’s a tough opponent. She took some time out, obviously, off the tour, for sort of mental health reasons and just to find herself again.”

Anisimova responded, “She’s a friend of mine so it will be a bit interesting but I’m sure that we will both give it our all and I’m looking forward to the battle. We’ve both been around the tour. We’re the same age. We also have a mutual friend, Priscilla Hon. We’ve hung out a few times all together. She’s a nice girl. She’s always bringing a good energy into the room. Also an amazing competitor.”

Raducanu acknowledged the challenge of playing a friend after their Australian Open match: “It’s incredibly difficult whenever you play a friend. It adds another dimension to the match, and not necessarily a pleasant one. It’s really difficult to put all things off court aside, but I managed to do a great job today. She’s such an amazing opponent who has had so many big wins, so I knew I had to fight hard, raise my game and not go away in the second set even when the chips were down. I’m just really pleased and I wished her all the best.”

After their Miami clash, Raducanu noted Anisimova’s resilience despite injury: “Playing Amanda is never easy, she’s had some amazing wins, top 20 and won a Masters this year. She’s playing great tennis and I hope her wrist, or something, is okay. I felt something was maybe going down on the other side. And, it’s really difficult to stay focused when your opponent is making some errors and then all of a sudden, [is] just blasting the lines and winners, and you have no idea what’s going on! I think those matches, it’s almost tougher to stay so ‘on’ the whole time, because when things are, in a way, more ‘normal’, you have to be locked in every single point. I’m really proud of how I came through that.”

Their third-round meeting is scheduled for Friday, with the winner set to face either 10th seed Elina Svitolina or Anna Kalinskaya in the last 16.

The 2025 clay-court season on the ATP Tour has concluded, with a broad array of tournaments held from South America to Europe, culminating post-Wimbledon. This year’s clay events offered numerous opportunities to accumulate valuable ranking points.

Carlos Alcaraz emerged well ahead of the pack, amassing a remarkable 4,330 points on clay. His haul included 2,000 points from defending his French Open title, plus 1,000 points each for victories in Monte Carlo and Rome. Additionally, his runner-up finish in Barcelona contributed 330 points. Notably, Alcaraz skipped the Madrid Open but still outpaced all contenders on clay by a wide margin.

Lorenzo Musetti showcased consistent performance without claiming a title, securing 2,300 points. His results included a semi-final appearance at Roland Garros (800 points), a first Masters 1000 final in Monte Carlo (650 points), and semi-finals at both Madrid and Rome (400 points each), with an additional 50 points from Buenos Aires.

World No. 1 Jannik Sinner played just two clay events but still earned 1,950 points. He reached the Italian Open final for 650 points and made his first French Open final appearance, garnering 1,300 points. His season was impacted by a doping ban that caused him to miss Monte Carlo, Madrid, and withdraw from Hamburg.

Casper Ruud collected 1,500 points on clay, highlighted by his first Masters 1000 title in Madrid worth 1,000 points. He also earned 200 points in Rome, 100 in Monte Carlo, and 100 at the Barcelona Open but exited the French Open early with only 50 points.

Alexander Zverev earned a total of 1,410 clay points. His highlights included winning Munich (500 points), reaching the quarterfinals at Roland Garros (400 points), and collecting points in Rome, Madrid, and other tournaments, though some points did not contribute to his ranking.

Alexander Bublik was a notable surprise, amassing 1,230 points with multiple tournament runs: the Turin Challenger title (175 points), various points from Munich, Madrid, and the Italian Open, a quarterfinal appearance at Roland Garros (400 points), and back-to-back titles in Gstaad and Kitzbuhel (500 points).

Juan Manuel Cerundolo had mixed results, with a disappointing French Open first-round exit (10 points) but strong performances elsewhere, including a Madrid Open semifinal (400 points) and significant points from Rome, Monte Carlo, Munich, Buenos Aires, and other events, totaling 1,275 points on clay.

This comprehensive summary reflects the diverse paths top players took to capture ranking points throughout this year’s clay season.

Emma Raducanu continued her impressive run on the North American hard courts by defeating Peyton Stearns in the second round of the Canadian Open in Montreal. The British player won 6-2, 6-4 against the American No. 37-ranked Stearns, who was broken twice and lost only four points on serve in the opening set.

Stearns pushed back in the second set, gaining a 4-2 lead, but Raducanu rallied to claim the next four games and close out the match. Raducanu now holds an undefeated 3-0 record against Stearns, not having dropped a set in their meetings.

Reflecting on the match, Raducanu said,

“I know Peyton is a really tough opponent, we’ve played two times in the past and always had really long matches. I’m really happy with how I came through in that match. I kind of lost my focus at some moments in the second set and she took advantage, but very happy that I came through against a top opponent and happy to extend my stay in Montreal.”

Raducanu added, “I just want to say thank you [to the fans], I saw the Union Jack in clutch moments and I was actually born in Canada, so to come back and to me it means so much to do well here and very happy to be into the next round.”

Starting her summer hard-court season at the Citi DC Open, Raducanu has won five of six matches in straight sets, including victories over Marta Kostyuk, Naomi Osaka, and Maria Sakkari, before falling to Anna Kalinskaya in the Washington semifinals. She began the Canadian Open with a 6-2, 6-4 win against Elena-Gabriela Ruse.

After her Washington run, Raducanu was ranked World No. 33, but dropped to No. 42 in the Live WTA Rankings once points from last year’s event dropped due to calendar changes. Her two wins in Montreal have lifted her back to No. 37; a win in her next match against World No. 7 Amanda Anisimova could move her up to No. 34.

Raducanu holds a 2-0 record over Anisimova, including straight-set wins at the Australian Open and Miami Open earlier this year. Securing a top 32 seeding at the US Open remains a realistic goal and would improve her chances of a favorable draw at the Grand Slam. Notably, Raducanu will not lose further points before the US Open as she did not play in last year’s Canadian or Cincinnati tournaments.