Another Wimbledon is in the books, serving as an exceptional five-set thriller in the final where Carlos Alcaraz ousted the 23-time Grand Slam Champ, Novak Djokovic. At the same time, Marketa Vondrousova became the first unseeded women’s player to win a Wimbledon title after defeating Ons Jabeur 6-4, 6-4.
However, few would have thought that among nine Canadians competing at the All-England Club, not one player would make it past the fourth round. Canada has been en route to becoming a top tennis nation, and with two Wimbledon finals appearances and a U.S. Open title, the plan is working. Well, until it didn’t.
Bad Knees End Wimbledon Dreams for Auger-Aliassime and Shapovalov, Raonic Falters
Wimbledon has been a major where Canadians have had a fair share of success. The 2023 contingent was hellbent on making a notable comeback, especially in the men’s draw. The 2016 Wimbledon runner-up Milos Raonic competed for the first time since 2019, Felix Auger-Aliassime, the 11th seed of the tournament, and Denis Shapovalov were ready to set the bum knees aside and make a deep run.
Sadly, Auger-Aliassime, lost in the first round at the All England Club against a Lucky Loser qualifier in the opening round, his second consecutive Wimbledon exit in the first round. Sadly, Auger-Alliassime’s tendon damage to the left knee and the fact that he hasn’t played a match since his opening-round loss of the French Open against Fabio Fognini proved to be too big of an obstacle in the end.
Despite his strict weight-loss regimen that helped him lose three stone in a month to get in the best shape for SW19, Milos Raonic only managed to reach the second round, where he was beaten in four sets by 16th seed Tommy Paul. It remains to be seen if Raonic will continue his career, but as far as Wimbledon is concerned, he hinted that this was probably his last outing at the All-England Club.
The betting experts at LegalBetCanada gave Denis Shapovalov good odds of reaching the later stages of the tournament, but Safiullin, ranked 92nd in the world, downed Shapovalov in four sets, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1, 6-3 on the No. 2 Court. Shapo, the 26th seed, struggled with his serve throughout the match, resulting in 11 double faults. The subpar performance could be attributed to his knee injury, which was only aggravated after the performance, causing him to limp off the court after the match had ended.
With Shapo out of the picture, Canada lost all chances of the title in men’s singles, switching focus to next year’s edition of the famed tournament.
Andreescu, Fernandez, and Zhao — A Medley of Milestones, Comebacks and Disappointment
Bianca Andreescu remains the only Canadian ever to win a Grand Slam singles title in an epic match against Serena Williams in New York at the U.S. Open in 2019. However, Andreescu seems to have struggled to reach any notable consistency since that win. Admittedly, getting to Wimbledon’s third round this year was her back-to-back third round at Grand Slam events this year, a feat in its own right.
But, the world no.44 was beaten by Ons Jabeur 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, who was simply too good on that day at Central Court.
Fernandez ranked no 86, is also searching for that form that took her to the 2021 U.S. Open final she lost to Britain’s Emma Raducanu, one of the tennis stars solely missed at this year’s Wimbledon. Her great backcourt play and power strikes helped Fernandez take the first set against the French fifth seed Caroline Garcia in the second round, but Garcia ultimately won the championship tiebreak 10-6 in the decider and stopped Fernandez’s efforts dead in the track.
Canadian veteran Carol Zhao can be pleased with the performance of her first-ever main draw at a Grand Slam. Tamara Korpatsch of Germany was just a little better in all key segments, like winners, and made fewer mistakes, winning 1-6, 6-4, and 6-2 in the end.
Rebecca Marino, the fourth lady to headline the Canadian women’s tennis team at 2023 Wimbledon, is back at it after an 11-year hiatus. The world’s 88th player, Marino, fought bravely against Romania’s Irina-Camelia Begu in the opening round but couldn’t quite find a foothold in the match, failing 6-2, 3-6, and 6-2.
U.S Open — A Shot at Redemption
Canadian players have already turned their focus towards National Bank Open in Toronto and Montreal, the only ATP 1000 Masters tournament in the Great White North, in a bid to defend the home court. After the National Bank Open, the spotlight turns to the U.S. Open in New York, where Canadians have had much success over the years.
