Monday Digest: The Olympics Have Arrived

It has solely been three years for the reason that final Summer time Olympics, however that doesn’t imply the anticipation was not boiling over by the point play started in Paris on Saturday. 

All 5 Canadians have already competed in at the least one match on the Olympics. And the draw is opening up properly for one of many nation’s largest names. 

Right here’s what it’s good to know. 

What to Watch: As soon as Each 4 Years is Now 

The wait is over: the 2024 Summer time Olympics in Paris have arrived. 

Play started on Saturday at Roland-Garros, though the Canadians all needed to wait till Sunday to get their campaigns underway because the occasion received off to a wet begin. 

Leylah Annie Fernandez has already made historical past for Canada on the Olympics, turning into the primary Canadian lady ever to achieve the spherical of sixteen in singles. She battled previous former Roland-Garros runner-up Karolina Muchova within the first spherical after which beat Cristina Busca in straight units in spherical two. 

Subsequent up for the Canadian is three-time main champion Angelique Kerber, with a spot within the quarter-finals on the road. 

Félix Auger-Aliassime additionally received off to a formidable begin in Paris, simply defeating Marcos Giron to win his first-ever match on the Olympics. The Canadian males’s No. 1 is anticipated to play Maximilian Marterer within the second spherical on Tuesday. 

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A win may see Auger-Aliassime renew his rivalry with Daniil Medvedev, who leads their head-to-head 7-0. Nonetheless, it could be a primary assembly on clay between the pair. 

Two Canadians have already seen their singles runs in Paris come to an finish. 

Bianca Andreescu scored a formidable win in spherical one over Clara Tauson however was eradicated in spherical two by Wimbledon semifinalist Donna Vekic. 

Milos Raonic competed in his first clay occasion in over 4 years however misplaced in a three-tiebreak affair to Dominik Koepfer. 

Two of the Canadian doubles groups each performed their first-round matches on Monday. The ladies’s pair of Gabriela Dabrowski and Fernandez superior in straight units previous Clara Burel and Varvara Gracheva of France, however the males’s group of Auger-Aliassime and Raonic had been defeated by third seeds Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul of the US.

Auger-Aliassime and Dabrowski are representing Canada within the blended doubles. 

Underneath the Radar: Diallo’s First Win of 2024 

Gabriel Diallo was an enormous winner on the ATP Challenger Tour final week, selecting up his first title of the season in Chicago. 

The 6’8 Montrealer cruised by way of the draw within the midwest, not solely not dropping a set on his approach to the title, however he didn’t even have his serve damaged in 5 matches. He defeated Yunchaokete Bu in straight units within the closing. 

It’s the third ATP Challenger Tour title of Diallo’s profession. He has gained one per 12 months every of the final three years.

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Cleeve Harper joined Diallo within the winner’s circle final week in Illinois, successful an ITF title two hours down the I-57 in Champaign, IL. Harper’s first title of 2024 got here alongside American Tyler Zink. 

It was the second ITF title for the pair, having beforehand gained in Pittsburgh again in 2022, and on the M25 degree, it’s the largest title of Harper’s profession to date. 

In Case You Missed It: Fast One for Shapo 

With the Olympics getting underway on the weekend, it sucked up a lot of the eye from occasions going down on the ATP and WTA Excursions. 

From a Canadian perspective, it was a quiet week with simply Denis Shapovalov competing on the 250 occasion in Atlanta. He misplaced his first-round match to David Goffin in three units. 

You possibly can comply with the Canadians in motion each week right here.