Swiatek cruises, Osaka battles; Bouchard bids adieu to tennis
- Last updated: July 31, 2025 | 23:38
Wimbledon champion Iga Swiatek cruised, Naomi Osaka battled through and Canadian Eugenie Bouchard called time on her WTA career with a gutsy second-round loss in Montreal on Wednesday.
Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic sent Bouchard into retirement with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 victory -- but not before the Canadian thrilled her hometown fans by seizing an early break in the third set.
Spectators were on their feet, trying to will Bouchard to another victory on the heels of her first-round triumph on Monday -- her first WTA win since 2023.
But Bencic won five of the last six games to vanquish Bouchard, who had announced earlier in July she would retire after a final appearance in her home tournament.
“I think it’s so special to play my last match here in Montreal on this court in front of you guys,” a teary Bouchard said as she was honored on court after the match.
“I remember being a little kid sitting in these stands, hoping and dreaming that I would play on this court one day.
Bouchard, who rose as high as fifth in the world rankings, shot to prominence in 2014 when she reached the Wimbledon final and made semi-final runs at the Australian and French Opens.
But her career was hindered by injuries, including a concussion suffered in a locker room slip at the 2015 US Open and a shoulder injury that required surgery in 2021.
There was no drama for Poland’s Swiatek, who breezed past Chinese qualifier Guo Hanyu 6-3, 6-1 in her first match since her crushing victory over Amanda Anisimova in the Wimbledon final.
Swiatek, seeded second, broke Guo’s serve six times to book her spot in the third round.
It was much harder going for Japan’s four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka, who saved two match points in a 4-6, 7-6 (8/6) 6-3 triumph over Liudmila Samsonova.
Osaka, now working with Tomasz Wiktorowski after announcing on Monday she had split with coach Patrick Mouratoglou, surrendered early breaks in each of the first two sets.
Wimbledon quarter-finalist Samsonova served for the match at 5-4 in the second and led 40-15. The Russian fired a forehand long on her first match point and on her second a lackluster drop shot effort gave Osaka an opening and the Japanese star pounced.
Samsonova’s double fault on break point allowed Osaka to level the set, and after storming back from 5-2 down in the tiebreaker to force a third set Osaka took control early, breaking Samsonova twice on the way to a 4-1 lead.
Jessica Pegula, the two-time defending champion and third seed, saved five set points in the opening set on the way to a 7-5, 6-4 victory over Maria Sakkari of Greece.
Australian Open champion Madison Keys, the sixth seed, opened her campaign with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Laura Siegemund, avenging a third-round loss to the German at Wimbledon.
Meanwhile, second-seeded Taylor Fritz struggled with three rain delays and a stubborn Spanish opponent on Wednesday, pulling out a tight 7-5, 7-6 (7/1) win over Roberto Carballes Baena at the ATP Toronto Masters.
The second-round match was halted repeatedly by light rain, with the final 18-minute pause coming just as the second-set tiebreaker was about to start.
But Fritz, winner of Stuttgart and Eastbourne titles this season, quickly sprinted to victory before heavier rains were expected to set in.
The American was far from pleased with a win which was marred by 45 unforced errors and confessed that he has not yet felt on his game in Canada.
“Even in practice I’m having a hard time putting the ball into the court,” he said. “But I’m happy to get through this one.
“Everything is not feeling great, it’s tough to control the ball.
“Since I’ve been here it’s been absolutely brutal. But I have another match to figure it out and hopefully I can play myself into the tournament.”
Agencies