Cashmere Wrap: National Bank Open Draw Looking…

Other notable faces at the draw table were tournament director Karl Hale, tournament referee Tony Cho, WTA supervisor Donna Kelso and one of Canada’s biggest tennis stars, Bianca Andreescu.

The draw itself had a few moments where there were audible gasps from those in attendance, none more so than when the first-round match between No. 9 seed Ons Jabeur and former World No. 1 Naomi Osaka, who has a wildcard into the draw this year, was revealed. The pair have only faced each other once before, with Osaka prevailing in straight sets at the Australian Open in 2021 on her way to winning the event for the second time. This blockbuster opening round match will take place during the day session on Wednesday Aug. 7.

Reigning US Open champion Coco Gauff is the No. 1 seed. She and the other top eight seeds receive a first-round bye.

The top seed will face the winner between former Slam champion Sofia Kenin and a qualifier. If the seedings hold true, Gauff would face sixth-seeded Liudmila Samsonova in the quarter-finals.

In the second quarter of the draw, defending champion Jessica Pegula is the third seed and will square off against either Nadia Podoroska or “Ace Queen” Karolina Pliskova in her opening match.

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Canada’s Leylah Annie Fernandez is seeded 15th and also in this quadrant of the draw, with a possible third-round encounter looming against Pegula. Fernandez drew 35-year-old Zhang Shuai of China in her first match which will take place Wednesday night at 7pm on Centre Court.

Fernandez handled Shuai comfortably 6-3, 6-1 in their only previous meeting three years ago on the clay in Charleston.

This quarter of the draw has several strong veteran players in the mix including Sloane Stephens, 12th seed Vika Azarenka, and seventh seed Madison Keys.

The third quarter of the draw is led by fourth seed Jelena Ostapenko, while other contenders in this section include American Emma Navarro, seeded eighth, who just fell to eventual Olympic Gold Medalist Qinwen Zheng in the third round in Paris. Elina Svitolina is also lurking in this quadrant and has a history of playing well in Canada. She is one of three former champs in the draw along with Pegula and Andreescu. The Ukrainian was the winner here in Toronto back in 2017.

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20-year-old Canadian Marina Stakusic of Mississauga finds herself in this section and is playing in the main draw for the first time. Her first match will be against a qualifier.

One more Canadian in this section is Vancouver’s Rebecca Marino, who has a wildcard into the draw and will face Magda Linette of Poland in the opening round.

In the final quarter is No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka. Sabalenka’s best result in Canada came in 2021 in Montreal when she made the semifinals. This year in Toronto, she’ll open against either Cristina Bucsa or Yue Yuan. Other threats in the bottom portion of the draw include fifth seed Daria Kasatkina.

Andreescu is in this part of the draw and opens against veteran Lesia Tsurenko. That match will kick off the night session on Tuesday Aug. 6. The Ukrainian leads their head-to-head 2-0, but one of those matches was on clay and the other was the semifinals in Hua Hin in 2023 when the Canadian was forced to retire in the second set with injury.

At the draw ceremony on Saturday, Andreescu had left the room for the actual draw proceedings, not wanting to see too far ahead of what her NBO journey could consist of. She returned afterwards to answer a few questions and share her positive vibes ahead of her hometown tournament. It should be noted that the last time Andreescu helped with the draw ceremony in 2019, she went on to become the first Canadian champion at the event in 50 years.

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Asked about her opening opponent, Andreescu shared that, “she’s an incredible competitor, I’ve had two matches with her and they’ve all been physically brutal. But I feel like now I can sustain that, I feel very physically strong so I’m looking forward to it. I know it’s not going to be easy but the fans will love it.”

Tennis fans certainly will love that match and all the other terrific ones that will happen over the coming days in Toronto, as the draw has delivered the potential for a fantastic week of tennis at Canada’s premier tournament.

The WTA’s best return to Toronto this summer for the National Bank Open August 4 to 12, 2024 at Sobeys Stadium. 2024 Tickets are on sale. Get your tickets today!

Feature Photo: Peter Power