Cashmere Wrap: Stars Come Out for Family Weekend…

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The National Bank Open presented by Rogers kicked-off Sunday with the 407 ETR Family Weekend and the start of the qualifying draw in Toronto.

Every year, tennis fans flock to Sobeys Stadium and enjoy the action for free which is always a big hit. It seems like every edition of the tournament gets busier and busier in terms of attendance on opening weekend and today was no exception.

There are tons of activations happening around the grounds to keep tennis fans young and young-at-heart engaged.

In the morning, fans had the opportunity to try their skills at the “Have a Go” wheelchair tennis activity. At midday, 2022 NBO finalist Beatriz Haddad Maia was signing autographs for her fans. The Brazilian had a truly inspiring event here two years ago where she defeated No. 1 seed Iga Swiatek, former Olympic Gold medallist Belinda Bencic and former World No. 1 Karolina Pliskova to reach the finals before falling in a tight three-set match to Simona Halep.

Of particular interest for kids on site today was the LEGO booth. Early in the afternoon there was a Master Builders competition which drew a solid turnout.

Throughout the day, various WTA players were also participating in their pre-tournament press conferences. Canada’s Marina Stakusic spoke about how she is eagerly anticipating her main draw debut at her hometown tournament. She fondly recalled what it was like coming to the NBO as a kid and had a particularly impressive memory:

“I used to come here all the time, pretty much every year since I was like six or seven years old. I obviously watched all the Canadians but specifically I remember getting two of Djokovic’s racquets in 2012 when he won the final, so that was like the coolest thing ever for me and my siblings.”

Leylah Annie Fernandez, meanwhile, is the only seeded Canadian at No. 15 and is looking forward to once again teaming-up with her little sister Bianca Jolie in the women’s doubles draw. The 21-year-old spoke about her Olympic experience in Paris and said she took a lot from watching the successes and also the challenges experienced by her fellow competitors.

“I think that has motivated not only the younger generations but also myself as a fellow athlete to keep working hard, to keep striving for more, to keep improving and not think of my defeats as a setback but an opportunity to keep getting better.”

In terms of tennis action, there were 32 players at the start of the day vying for eight positions in the main draw.

Canadian Stacey Fung was playing in qualies for the first time and facing 99th-ranked Jule Niemeier. Fung had recently made the semifinals of the ITF event in Granby and brought that momentum into the pre-qualifying tournament last week at Sobeys Stadium where she was the last Canadian standing which allowed her access into the actual qualifying draw.

Follow the Results of Sunday in Toronto

Fung managed her nerves and emerged with a 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 win. The Vancouverite will next face Katie Volynets for a spot in the main draw.

Eugenie Bouchard followed on the Cashmere Grandstand court and despite a ranking differential of 459 spots in favour of her opponent Moyuka Uchijima, the Canadian veteran held her own in the early goings of the match. Bouchard took the first set 7-5 thanks to three consecutive double-faults from the Japanese player. She turned that into momentum in the second set, racing to a 5-1 lead, but then her opponent came to life went on to win the match 5-7, 7-5, 6-4. It was a disappointment for Bouchard, however given that she has only played a handful of matches all season, it was quite a respectable showing against the 64th-ranked player in the world.

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