Good morning, Court Theorists! ☕️☀️🍁
Today’s tennis mood: Mildly annoyed at the schedule, but charged up for the match-ups.
Let’s tennis!
-Allen
🎾 On tap: Well, not a whole helluva lot, to be honest. That’s because of this absurd schedule the ATP foisted upon the Canadian Open, which has pushed the tournament into a two-week format without having both men and women on-site at the same time. That means the tournament has been on one court since Saturday, and, starting today, it’s just in the evening.
Noteworthy: That should mean a greater emphasis on doubles to keep those without center court tickets engaged. So far, the tours haven’t seen it that way.
Still: Of the four singles matches between the two cities, there are some fun ones. Diana Shnaider will look to challenge Iga Swiatek, and Ekaterina Alexandrova will force a baseline battle against Elina Svitolina. Rafael Jodar vs. Arthur Fils is the Court Theory pick of the night, while Luciano Darderi vs. Brandon Nakashima should also provide some serious entertainment, too.
🎾 Sinner out: Jannik Sinner has pulled out of Cincinnati, citing an unspecified knee injury.
What he said: “After consulting with my doctors and my team, I have to announce that I need to withdraw from the Masters 1000 tournament in Cincinnati,” Sinner said in a statement. “My right knee has been bothering me and even though we have been working hard with my medical team, I have to accept that I’m not ready to compete yet…I’m now focusing on getting ready for the U.S. Open.”
Next: Good question. Sinner indicated he’s preparing for the U.S. Open. But that would mean going into the third major of the year having not played since Wimbledon, unless he takes a wild card into Winston-Salem.
🎾 One to watch: Rafael Jodar vs. Arthur Fils (Quarterfinals - ATP 1000 - Montreal): It’s a rematch (again)! Jodar is still in his first year on the pro tour, but these two have already played twice. Expect fun, explosive hitting and massive serving. This match will likely be determined by how willing each one is to play defense — and then their ability to turn that defense into offense.
The record: The record between Rafael Jodar and Arthur Fils is tied at one apiece. Jodar won the most recent meeting on the hard courts of Washington just two weeks ago.
On the line: For these two especially, this face-off is about pride between two young guns. For Fils, there’s the additional consideration of needing matches after a rough late spring/early summer. And Jodar is keenly aware that he has shot at hitting the top 10 before the U.S. Open. So every win is a step toward that achievement.
🎾 🏆 🎤 YOUR CALL
And that’s game.
