Canadian Tennis Players Shine in First Round at Australian Open

On Tuesday at the Australian Open, Canadian tennis players Denis Shapovalov and Gabriel Diallo showcased their skills, successfully navigating challenging first-round matches to move forward in the tournament. Shapovalov, currently ranked 56th, faced off against Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut, who is ranked 53rd. Their match, held on Court 5 at Melbourne Park, extended over three hours, culminating in a victory for Shapovalov with scores of 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (8). Despite displaying a strong serving game with 24 aces, Shapovalov faced difficulties with 15 double faults. He is now set to play against 16th seed Lorenzo Musetti from Italy in the next round.

Gabriel Diallo, ranked 86th, made a strong debut in the main draw at Melbourne Park by using his formidable first serve to defeat Luca Nardi from Italy. The match ended with a score of 6-7 (1), 7-6 (3), 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 after four hours and ten minutes. Diallo showcased his attacking play with 21 aces and was successful in winning 75 percent of the points on his first serve. He will next meet 19th seed Karen Khachanov of Russia.

In the doubles competition, Canadian Leylah Fernandez, hailing from Laval, Quebec, teamed up with Ukraine’s Nadiia Kichenok to advance to the second round after securing a 6-3, 6-3 victory against the Australian pair Maya Joint and Talia Gibson. Additionally, Gabriela Dabrowski from Canada and Erin Routliffe from New Zealand were set to kick off their campaign against American duo Danielle Collins and Desirae Krawczyk. On another note, Fernandez, who is seeded 30th in singles, anticipated competing against Spain’s Cristina Bucsa later in the day. Meanwhile, Montreal’s Félix Auger-Aliassime, seeded 29th and coming off a win at the Adelaide International, prepared to face Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the second round.