Week In Preview: Daniil Medvedev ascends up north, Iga Swiatek kicks off hard-court campaign in Canada

WATCH: Medvedev will take a winning streak up north to Montréal after winning the title in Los Cabos.

The summer hard-court season has four phases, each of which puts more money and rankings points on the table. First come the 250s, then the 500s, then the 1000s, and finally, a Grand Slam event in New York. On Monday we’ll reach phase three: the twin Masters 1000s tournaments in Canada.

This year the men are in Montréal and the women are in Toronto. As always with mandatory events, everyone who can be there, is there. While that doesn’t include Novak Djokovic (not vaccinated), Rafael Nadal (abdominal injury), and Victoria Azarenka (visa issues), it does include Serena Williams, who has popped up alongside her sister Venus. Here’s a look at how both draws have shaken out.

Omnium Bank National (ATP)

• Montréal
• $6,573,785; Masters 1000
• Hard court
• Draw is here

Click for Montréal tickets at TicketSmarter

Two weeks ago I wrote a post about Daniil Medvedev and Carlos Alcaraz, and how the second half of 2022 might shape up for them. Each has been hailed as the future of men’s tennis this year, but rather than living up to that billing at the majors, they watched as Djokovic and Nadal monopolized them yet again. Now the Russian and the Spaniard are the top two seeds in Montreal. For Medvedev, this is a chance to reassert his dominance during this time of year, and justify his No. 1 ranking. For Alcaraz, it’s a chance to break new ground, and continue the winning form he showed on hard courts in Indian Wells and Miami this spring.

A meeting between them in the final would be ideal, but, this being a Masters 1000, neither has a glide path there. Especially Medvedev. He could open against Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios, a player he has beaten once and lost to twice. In the quarterfinals, Medvedev is slated to face Hubert Hurkacz, who has beaten him twice this season, both times in straight sets. Alcaraz, meanwhile, could play Tommy Paul in his first match, Andrey Rublev in the quarters, and either Stefanos Tsitsipas or Jannik Sinner in the semis. Sinner has beaten Alcaraz twice in the last two months.

Player of Interest: Matteo Berrettini, who has won 12 of his last 13 matches. He could face Sinner in the third round.

First-round matches to watch:

Kyrgios vs. Sebastian Baez

Alex de Minaur vs. Denis Shapovalov

Jenson Brooksby vs. Alexander Bublik

Cameron Norrie vs. Brandon Nakashima

Taylor Fritz vs. Andy Murray

National Bank Open (WTA)

• Toronto
• $2,527,250; Masters 1000
• Hard court
• Draw is here

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With the exception of ninth-ranked Danielle Collins, who pulled out with a neck injury, the WTA’s Top 10 is present and accounted for in Toronto. That doesn’t mean many of them, or any of them, will still be around at the business end of the tournament. As we saw again this week in San Jose, where Shelby Rogers and Daria Kasatkina emerged form a fairly loaded 500-level draw to reach the final, the WTA’s top tier isn’t in dominating form right now.

But there is still a clear No. 1. After winning 37 straight matches, Swiatek has lost two in her last two events. That’s the tough thing about winning everything in sight for four months: When you don’t do it, people assume something’s wrong. She’ll want to get back on track, and cut short any talk of a slide in form, as soon as she can. Will Swiatek emerge from this week as the favorite to win the Open? Or will we be talking about how anything can happen in New York?

Swiatek’s status hasn’t earned her any breaks from the draw gods. She’ll start against either Rogers or Kudermetova, both of whom are in form right now. She could play home-country favorite Leylah Fernandez in her second match. And on the other side of this section, there’s a murderer’s row of former Grand Slam champions: Serena Williams, who starts against lucky loser Nuria Parrizas Diaz; Naomi Osaka, who will open against Citi Open runner-up Kaia Kanepi; and Garbiñe Muguruza. Swiatek is lucky she’ll only have to face one of them in the quarters.

First-round matches to watch:

Osaka vs. Kanepi

Sofia Kenin vs. Sloane Stephens

Karolina Pliskova vs. an unseeded Barbora Krejcikova

Kasatkina vs. Bianca Andreescu

Emma Raducanu vs. Camila Giorgi

Venus Williams vs. Jil Teichmann

Potential second-round match to watch: Coco Gauff vs. Elena Rybakina