After a strong 2025, expectations were through the roof for the Canadian tennis roster coming into the new year. Last summer, Montréal saw Victoria Mboko go on a Cinderella run, knocking down four former Grand Slam champions on her way to securing her maiden Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) 1000 title. The win happened on her home soil, making her the third Canadian to do so. On the men’s side, Felix Auger-Aliassime reached uncharted territories in his career after breaking through the top five of the ATP rankings, highlighted by a semi-final appearance in the US Open and a finals slot at the Paris Masters. 

Besides capturing the National Bank Open title, Mboko also capped off her breakout season as the 18th-ranked WTA player. Mboko leapt 33 spots while setting a record-breaking 22-match win streak and bagging four consecutive International Tennis Federation (ITF) titles to etch her name in history books. She also clinched a WTA 250 title in Hong Kong to round out the year.

Auger-Aliassime, on the other hand, became the second Canadian, besides Milos Raonic, to crack a top-five spot in the ATP rankings. His title wins in Adelaide, Brussels, and Montpellier, on top of a 50–24 record, signified his formidable form in the ATP 250 tournaments. He also earned the chance to play at the Nitto ATP Finals, bowing out in the semi-final.

If last year indicated anything for two of the best players in contemporary Canadian tennis, it is that they should be on course for a blazing start to 2026. Not to mention, the Canadian team collectively produced historic results, as both the men’s and women’s rosters placed third for most tour trophies collected on the tour last year (six for men’s, four for women’s). While the women’s roster stood its ground in this year’s first Grand Slam tournament, their men’s counterpart faltered in the early rounds.

Auger-Aliassime retires early

Seemingly on the start of another promising Major campaign, Auger-Aliassime then dropped two straight sets, with an injury forcing him to concede his tournament progress at the 2026 Australian Open and allowing Nuno Borges a walkover in the first round.

Auger-Aliassime, who was fresh from the Nitto ATP Finals, took the first set before Portugal’s Borges seized the next two to lead, 2–1 (6–3, 4–6, 4–6), as the latter looked at a possible upset win against the Canadian. The 25-year-old, who was then struggling with upper left leg pain, called a medical timeout at the end of the third set and at the start of the fourth to seek treatment. After playing the next two points, he retired from the match.

“I want to be on the court winning. I want to be on the court competing with my opponent,” Auger-Aliassime remarked in a post-game interview during media availability. “I don’t want to be just standing there like a punching bag. So there’s no point, and you know to move on,” he added. 

Denis Shapovalov was the only Canadian on the men’s singles bracket to advance onto the second round after sweeping China’s Bu Yanchaokete, 3–0 (6–3, 7–6 (7–3), 6–1), but fell to Marin Cilic in straight sets, 3–0 (6–4, 6–3, 6–2) in the second round. Meanwhile, Gabriel Diallo of Montréal and Newmarket’s Liam Draxl also went out in the first round.

A tournament of firsts

“I’ve never played a current No.1 in the world… I’ve never played on a Grand Slam centre court either, a lot of firsts,” Mboko said during media availability ahead of her game against Aryna Sabalenka. 

Her spirited manner is not to be mistaken for nerves in what was the biggest match of her career thus far. In her first fourth-round match in a Grand Slam setting, the ice-cool Canadian almost forced the World No.1 Sabalenka to a third set, rallying back in the second set to push it to a tiebreaker game, before succumbing to her higher-ranked foe, 2–0 (6–1, 7–6 (7–1)).

Meanwhile, the other Canadian in the main draw of the women’s singles fixtures, Leylah Fernandez, bounced out of the tournament in the first round as Indonesia’s Janice Tjen dispatched her in straight sets, 2–0 (6–2, 7–6 (7–1)).

What’s next?

Auger-Aliassime just successfully defended his Open Occitanie crown, downing French Adrian Mannarino in straight sets. On February 10-14, Shapovalov also vied for a back-to-back Dallas Open title bid, but fell to Ben Shelton in the semi-final round. After a nonideal start to the new year, these two will look to bounce back and string together some wins to bolster the Canadians’ momentum as they go on their slate. 

On the other hand, Mboko withdrew her eligibility for the WTA Abu Dhabi Open, instead focusing her sights on the Doha and Dubai WTA 1000 tournaments. Fernandez, meanwhile, incurred another early exit from the Abu Dhabi Open, losing in straight sets to the unseeded and therefore less-favoured American, McCartney Kessler.