Canada’s Victoria Mboko and Leylah Fernandez have advanced to the second round of the women’s singles draw at the Hong Kong Open. Mboko, seeded third in the tournament, fought back from a set down to defeat Talia Gibson of Australia 6-7 (2), 6-1, 6-4 in nearly two hours on Tuesday. The 19-year-old from Toronto, who previously won the National Bank Open in Montreal, showcased an impressive performance with 19 aces and converting four out of five break-point opportunities in the match. Her next challenge will be against the victor of the first-round clash between Britain’s Katie Boulter and Alexandra Eala from the Philippines.
Meanwhile, the second-seeded Fernandez had a smooth start as she cruised to a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Wang Xiyu from China in her opening match. The 23-year-old from Laval, Quebec, is set to face Germany’s Eva Lys in the next round.
Over at the Paris Masters tennis tournament, Montreal’s Félix Auger-Aliassime secured a first-round win, keeping his hopes alive for qualifying in the ATP Finals. Auger-Aliassime rallied back from losing the first set to defeat Argentine qualifier Francisco Comesana 6-7 (2), 6-3, 6-3. In other matches, Montreal’s Gabriel Diallo overcame Tallon Griekspoor from the Netherlands with a 6-3, 6-4 victory, while Denis Shapovalov from Richmond Hill, Ontario, faced a defeat of 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 against Joao Fonseca. Auger-Aliassime’s win brought him within 440 points of eighth place in the ATP Race To Turin standings, with the top eight securing spots in the season-ending event in Italy.
Auger-Aliassime, who recently won an ATP 250 event in Belgium, retired from a quarterfinal match in Basel due to a back injury. Seeded ninth in Paris, he is scheduled to play against France’s Alexandre Muller in the next round. Diallo, ranked 42nd globally, will challenge sixth seed Alex de Minaur from Australia after defeating Griekspoor, whom he had faced twice before this year. Shapovalov, despite serving nine aces, succumbed to defeat with nine double faults against Fonseca. Fonseca, 19, went on to win the tournament in Basel, becoming the third-youngest player to claim an ATP 500 event.
In another development in the tennis world, Valerie Camillo is set to become the new chair of the WTA Tour and WTA Ventures starting next month, succeeding the retiring tour chair Steve Simon. Camillo expressed her honor in leading women’s professional tennis during what she described as a critical period for the sport. She brings a wealth of experience from overseeing business operations for various sports entities, including the Philadelphia Flyers and the Washington Nationals.