No Canadians will advance to the singles draws at the U.S. Open after Bianca Andreescu and Liam Draxl were defeated in the final round of the qualifying tournament in New York. Andreescu lost to Tamara Zidansek in a closely contested match where she struggled with net points despite delivering seven aces. The match, which started on Thursday, was interrupted by rain with Andreescu leading 2-0 at the time.
Similarly, Draxl faced Tristan Schoolkate in his qualifying match, which was postponed to Friday, eventually losing in a tough battle that stretched to a tie-breaker. Despite both players securing four breaks each, Schoolkate managed to secure a crucial break in the third set to take the lead.
Looking ahead to the main draw, Montreal’s Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov from Richmond Hill, Ont., will represent Canada in the men’s singles event, while Leylah Fernandez from Laval, Que., will compete in the women’s singles event after finishing as the runner-up in 2021.
In other news, Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula commended the U.S. Open for increasing the prize money allocation and establishing a player advisory council for Grand Slam events. Sabalenka, a vocal advocate for fair player compensation, expressed optimism that these developments would improve relations between players and tournament organizers. The record $108 million prize purse for this year’s tournament and the formation of the advisory council come in response to demands from top players for a bigger share of revenues and more say in decision-making processes.
Sabalenka and men’s world No. 1 Jannik Sinner were part of a movement earlier this year that restricted media interactions to 15 minutes to protest for a higher percentage of tournament revenue as prize money. Pegula praised the unity between male and female players for driving positive changes, highlighting the progress made in player welfare contributions and prize money increments. She emphasized the importance of players’ voices in a sport that has often been criticized for its fragmented structure.