Inclement weather conditions in Montreal forced the 2024 Omnium Banque National presented by Rogers to postpone play on Friday. Over 13 matches got canceled, leaving a challenging schedule for the weekend on Canadian soil, when world no. 1 Jannik Sinner will hit back the court, continuing his title defense on Saturday.
On Thursday, defending champion Jannik Sinner and second seed Alexander Zverev set off their campaigns at the Masters 1000 successfully, but in a day full of surprises, with plenty of seeds falling, the headlines were taken by the upsets in Montreal.
The reigning champion launched his title defense campaign, dismissing Croat Borna Coric in straight sets to earn his 43rd victory this year.
The 22-year-old looked healthy in his return to action after being forced to miss the Olympic Games due to tonsillitis.
Bidding to progress into his fifth Masters 1000 quarterfinal this season, he will next meet 15th seed Alejandro Tabilo, who moved past Italian Lorenzo Sonego in straight sets.
The 27-year-old from Chile has never played against Sinner before on tour.
For his part, Zverev opened proceedings with a rock-solid tennis showing behind his serve to sail past Australian Jordan Thompson, recording a 6-1, 6-1 win in 63 minutes.
On Saturday, the 2017 winner will square off against 13th seed Holger Rune, who achieved the third round at the tournament for the first time, prevailing over Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta 6-1, 6-3.
Giving Farewell to Canada
Third seed Daniil Medvedev was stunned by world no. 42 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina with a 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 win in barely two hours on Court Central.
As a result, the Spaniard, who beat the 2021 champion for the first time, advanced to the round of 16, setting a clash with Italian Matteo Arnaldi for Saturday.
Meanwhile, former world no. 4 Kei Nishikori shocked eighth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-4 in just 78 minutes, clinching his first Top 20 win since 2021 in Tokyo by delivering a consistent display to reach the third round at the event.
“I am playing well and feels I am back on track again, so I am really happy with the way I played today,” he said after the match.
“Beating Stef is not easy, and for me, it is a great win,” he added.
Sidelined from tour-level competition for nearly three years due to injuries, Nishikori is on a comeback path at age 34, entering the event on a protected ranking.
The lowest-ranked player into the last 16 at a Masters 1000 since 2004 will next face off against in-form Portuguese Nuno Borges, who took down Rafael Nadal at the Nordea Open Bastad final, staged last July in Sweden to claim his maiden career title on tour.
Moreover, on Thursday, the Portuguese player rallied from a set down to upset 12th seed Ugo Humbert in Montreal, grabbing a 3-6, 7-6(2), 7-6(4) victory after two hours and 48 minutes at the Omnium Banque National presented by Rogers.
But it was during the matchup between Nishikori and Tsitsipas that controversy made an unexpected entrance.
The Greek player, currently ranked at world no. 11, exchanged words with his father and coach, Apostolos Tsitsipas, who afterward left his seat.
However, the post-match declarations to the press would reflect the player’s high level of frustration, sharing some strong words.
“I’ve been complaining to my coach about [my forehand] for the last four, five days. That was also the reason I had a confrontation with him during the match. I’m not used to confronting my coach in that sense.”
Adding: “I really don’t know right now, but I am very disappointed. The most important thing as a player with a coach is to have direct and good feedback. The coach is not the one that is holding the racquet. The player is the one who is trying to execute a game plan and trying to make things happen on the tennis court.”
On Friday, the 11-time ATP titlist announced the end of the partnership with his dad as coach.
The 25-year-old wrote: “It is with a heavy heart that I inform you that my collaboration with my father as a coach has come to an end. I prefer to keep my father in his role as a father and only as a father.”
The former world no. 3 added: “Philosophy teaches us that wisdom comes through understanding our limits and acknowledging our mistakes. In my case, I realized that I was wrong to talk to my father the way I did. Tennis is not just a match, a hit, or a performance of a few seconds. It is a long journey of emotions, pressure, and expectations.
“In that moment of frustration, there were many mistakes and errors on the part of my coach and father. As an introvert, I tend to hold in my emotions and build them up until I reach a bursting point. I consider myself patient, so the fact that I reacted this way left me shocked.”
On a further note, in an all-American duel, Brandon Nakashima got the better of 10th seed Tommy Paul, producing a 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-1 win, setting a clash against fifth seed Andrey Rublev, who is on a mission to complete the set of quarterfinals at all nine Masters 1000 events.
Rublev secured his spot in the next round by overpowering Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry 7-6, 6-2 in 85 minutes.
