Sustaining Momentum from the National Bank Open to the US Open

Today, let’s focus on some WTA stars who have been able to sustain some of the momentum that they started here at Sobeys Stadium and see how they’ve performed so far at the final major of 2024.

Let’s start with two-time reigning champion in Canada, Jessica Pegula.

Back-to-back titles in Montreal and Toronto have shown her prowess on the summer hard courts. Pegula admitted during her title run at the 2024 National Bank Open that her solid results north of the border are perhaps due to the close proximity to her hometown of nearby Buffalo. So far in New York, Pegula has looked just as strong as she did in Toronto as she did not drop a set on her way to the quarter-finals.

Following her round of sixteen victory against Diana Shnaider, who she beat in Toronto as well, Pegula mentioned that she employed some of what she learned at the NBO to help her in New York.

“She’s really tricky, a tough lefty and has had a really good year so I thought I’d try to use the experience of when I played her in Toronto today and it was more or less the same, but I had to adapt to a couple of things she did differently.”

Shnaider, for her part, certainly impressed the Canadian crowds with her semifinal result at the NBO where she fell to Pegula in straight sets. It is likely that many weren’t familiar with the 20-year-old prior to the tournament, as she has exploded onto the scene this year grabbing three titles on three different surfaces.

Despite falling to Pegula once again in New York, Shnaider seems to have established herself as a legitimate Top 20 presence on the WTA Tour.

Emma Navarro was one of several Americans who had a deep run in Canada this summer, as five of the final eight women left in the singles draw at the NBO were from the United States. In New York, Navarro is once again showing her hard-court strengths with a solid run.

She knocked off defending champion Coco Gauff in the round of sixteen. Prior to this year, the 23-year-old had never before won a match at the US Open.

Navarro was asked at the National Bank Open about whether or not she has adjusted her goals as this season has progressed thanks to her strong play.

“Yeah, for sure. It's pretty crazy that being Top 10 could be on the horizon for me, it's definitely exciting and motivating. Then, of course, I haven't really thought too far ahead, but WTA Finals would be an amazing opportunity, so for sure a little bit of a boost of confidence, just knowing that I can play at this level.”

Read also: Canadian Doubles Steal the Show in Toronto

Some players who had strong runs in Toronto were not able to turn their momentum into wins at the US Open, but still delivered strong performances.

National Bank Open finalist Amanda Anisimova came up against a tough draw at the US Open in having to face Olympic Gold Medalist Qinwen Zheng in the opening round. The just-turned 23-year-old American took the first set before Zheng found her footing and took the match 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. Nonetheless, Anisimova has used her strong week in Canada to move back into the Top 50 in the WTA rankings, far surpassing her early season target of cracking the Top 100.

The last time we saw the same women’s singles champion in both Canada and then New York was when Bianca Andreescu defeated Serena Williams in Toronto and then at the US Open back in 2019.

Finally, Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe form the No. 1 tandem in women’s doubles at the US Open. They were finalists in Toronto, falling to the American tandem of Caroline Dolehide and Desirae Krawczyk in a closely-contested championship match and reached the quarter-finals in New York.

They are the last defending champions still alive from any of the draws at the US Open and are proving their consistency with another deep run.

Feature Photo : Peter Power