CANADIANS POISED TO STRIKE IN THE WORLD OF PRO TENNIS
Three men in top 32, with Pospisil moving up in the ranks — and there’s also Bianca
Vasek Pospisil wowed the crowd Wednesday night at the Osten & Victor Alberta Tennis Centre.
Calgarians cheered his every move …
And gushed with applause for every point made.
Yup, true to tennis terms, the love was there for the Canadian superstar.
“They keep outdoing themselves … this generation is doing amazing,” said Canadian legend Daniel Nestor, the honorary tournament chairman of the 2020 Calgary National Bank Challenger.
“It feels like it’s been like that for a few years now,” continued Nestor. “Now we’re in 2020 — an Olympic year, and a lot to look forward to. Maybe we get a top10 singles player on the men’s side this year.”
The way Pospisil has been playing, it could be him — you never know.
The 29-year-old from Vernon, B.C., hoped to maintain his charge up the charts — now at
No. 92 in the ATP Tour rankings — in Calgary with the ATP Challenger Tour stop.
Late Wednesday night, however, Pospisil was dropped 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 by Poland’s Kacper Zuk in second-round action. It kept Pospisil from continuing with his red-hot roll.
That’s Canadian tennis in a nutshell.
Red-hot.
Of course, there’s Bianca Andreescu coming off a shocking season, especially for a 19-yearold. Her U.S. Open victory is still being celebrated in Canada.
The Davis Cup run — “an amazing experience,” said Nestor — was something memorable for the nation, as well.
And don’t look now, but there’s plenty of promise among the men.
The proof is in the rankings, where — far above Pospisil — Denis Shapovalov is ranked 15th in the world, Felix Auger-aliassime is 19th and Milos Raonic is at No. 32.
While Raonic is the wily veteran on the Canadian tennis scene these days, Shapovalov and Auger-aliassime are part of that new generation the retired Nestor is raving about where, not long ago, it really wasn’t expected.
“From Bianca, I don’t think anyone expected that,” Nestor said. “You saw that she had potential, but you didn’t expect her to do what she did last year, especially in the U.S. Open.
“It’s hard to say why,” Nestor continued, when asked to pinpoint the reasons for the uptick in Canadian tennis. “I think definitely Milos breaking through about 10 years ago was vital. Once Milos broke through and was competing with the top players week-in and week-out, it definitely changed the perspective in Canadian tennis.
“I think then when television got on board and got way more involved and helped the sport grow in popularity, I’m sure that inspired this next wave.
“Combine that with the national centre that was updated and made into a great facility compared to any facility around the world, and you have the foundation for success, with a lot of youngsters given the opportunity to practise in an unbelievable training environment.”
This tournament in Calgary helps, too.
In singles play, nine Canadians took to the courts of the Osten & Victor Tennis Centre. Included were three Calgarians — Josh Peck, Harrison Scott and Cleeve Harper.
Although only two Canucks were left standing heading into Wednesday night’s action — Pospisil and Montreal’s Brayden Schnur — the head count from the host country is easy to get excited about.
“This is the norm now,” Nestor said. “You get a lot of Canadians playing, and a lot of them are inspired to get up there where our top guys are. So it’s good to see great participation.”
SERVICE ACES
In second-round action at the Calgary National Bank Challenger, Vancouver’s Filip Peliwo was defeated by Germany’s Tobias Kamke 6-4, 6-0 … First-round play saw Harper lose in heartbreaking fashion to Argentine Matias Franco Descotte 6-7(5), 7-6(3), 6-4 and Quebec’s Gabriel Diallo was upended by American Gage Brymer 6-2, 7-6(2) … Day 4 of the ATP Challenger event begins with morning draws at 10 a.m. The evening action starts at 6:30 p.m. On tap are singles third-round play and doubles quarter-finals.