Iga Swiatek opened her 2025 Canadian Open campaign with a commanding 6-3, 6-1 victory over qualifier Hanyu Guo in the tournament’s second round in Montreal. The world No. 3 demonstrated the form that took her to the Wimbledon title, breaking the 27-year-old Chinese player six times, including four times in the second set, after a swift 4-0 lead in the first set.

In doing so, Swiatek extended her streak of consecutive games won to 24, continuing the momentum from her flawless Wimbledon final against Amanda Anisimova, and the closing games of her semi-final against Belinda Bencic. Reflecting on her performance, Swiatek said, “I prepared for this match like I would for any other.” She noted, “I saw that my opponent played great in the first round, so I had some information. However, I preferred to focus on myself, on getting adjusted to the hard court again.”

Swiatek also highlighted her preparation after Wimbledon, stating, “I had time to celebrate a little bit after Wimbledon and got back to practice already in Warsaw, but obviously in different conditions.” She added, “I’m happy I had a chance to come here earlier. I feel like every day I made a bit of progress, so that’s the best thing you can have at the beginning of a swing, and then you just have to keep it up.”

Her win marked her 115th victory at WTA 1000 level in just 142 matches, a feat only 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams has surpassed, achieving the same milestone in 130 matches since the format was introduced in 2009. Additionally, Swiatek extended her remarkable run of consecutive first-round wins on the WTA Tour to 63, coming just one short of Monica Seles’ record of 64.

Swiatek now prepares to face world No. 69 Eva Lys in the third round. She aims to claim her first Canadian Open title, having previously reached the semi-finals in 2023. The 24-year-old did not compete in last year’s tournament, held shortly after the Paris Olympics, but holds a career record of 7-3 at this event.

Andrey Rublev commenced his 2025 Toronto Masters 1000 campaign with a solid victory against Hugo Gaston, prevailing 6-2, 6-3 in straight sets. This win marks the 250th hard-court triumph of Rublev’s professional career, an impressive feat that places him among a select group of players born in 1990 or later. Specifically, Rublev is only the second man born in 1997 or after to attain this milestone, following Alexander Zverev.

Rublev currently holds a career record of 250 wins to 143 losses on hard courts, translating to a winning percentage of 63.6%. Despite a challenging stretch from February to May 2025, during which he managed only two wins in seven tournaments and saw his ranking fall from No. 9 to No. 17, the Russian player has since regained form. Since the week before Roland Garros, Rublev has compiled a 13-6 record in seven events, including a final in Hamburg, back-to-back fourth-round appearances at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, and a semifinal showing at Los Cabos.

Following Wimbledon, Rublev briefly re-entered the ATP Top 10 at No. 10 but has since slipped to No. 11 this week after Alex de Minaur’s resurgence, fueled by his recent title in Washington D.C.

Naomi Osaka’s recent decision to part ways with coach Patrick Mouratoglou, just ten months into their partnership, was characterized by sports journalist Jon Wertheim as unsurprising, given the four-time Grand Slam champion’s ongoing struggles with confidence.

Their coaching relationship commenced following Osaka’s early exit at the 2024 US Open. Despite some successes, such as her first clay-court title at the WTA 125 Saint-Malo event and a final appearance at the Auckland Open earlier this year, results have been inconsistent.

Wertheim, a contributor to Tennis Channel, reflected on their split during the Served with Andy Roddick podcast, stating, “I don’t think this was a huge surprise. This has been a relationship of less than a year. Osaka has won a fair amount of matches, but not at the biggest and best events.” He noted Osaka’s recent loss to Emma Raducanu in Washington without Mouratoglou present, citing factors of both performance and logistical challenges given their locations in Miami and Nice respectively.

Wertheim added, “Patrick is also a guy who pumps a player up with confidence, I think he is much better known for that than any tactical expertise and I think if a player doesn’t have confidence, as Naomi doesn’t appear to have much of right now, I am not sure what the relationship is all about.”

Osaka officially announced the split on social media with a message to Mouratoglou: “Merci Patrick. It was such a great experience learning from you. Wishing you nothing but the best. You are one of the coolest people I’ve ever met and I’m sure I’ll see you around.” She quickly moved on by engaging Tomasz Wiktorowski as a trial coach ahead of the Canadian Open. Wiktorowski has a strong coaching background with Agnieszka Radwanska and Iga Swiatek, under whom he has overseen multiple Grand Slam victories.

Having won her opening match at the Canadian Open under Wiktorowski’s guidance, Osaka appears eager to stabilize her coaching team. At the outset of her partnership with Mouratoglou in September 2024, she expressed a desire for a long-term collaboration, saying, “I try not to get into relationships with people for the short term. I try to think of it as a long-term commitment.” The present changes underscore the complexities of maintaining that commitment amidst the demands of elite professional tennis.