TORONTO — Defending champion Daniil Medvedev has been named the top seed for the upcoming National Bank Open men’s tennis tournament in Montreal, while Iga Swiatek is the top seed for the women’s event in Toronto.
Tennis Canada announced the seedings Monday, based on that day’s release of the most recent ATP and WTA rankings. Both Medvedev and Swiatek are world No. 1 players.
Other seeded players for the men’s tournament include five-time champion Rafael Nadal as the second seed, third-seed Carlos Alcaraz, who won Masters tournaments in Miami and Madrid this year, and fourth-seed Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Four-time champion Novak Djokovic is provisionally seeded fifth, but is unlikely to play because of Canada’s COIVD-19 vaccine requirements.
Montreal-native Félix Auger-Aliassime, who is currently ranked No. 9 on the ATP Tour, will be the No. 8 seed at the event in his home city.
Swiatek set a new record for the longest match win streak in the 21st century, winning 37 matches in a row earlier this year. She won the French Open and four WTA 1000 titles over that span.
Finals runner-up Anett Kontaveit, world No. 3 Maria Sakkari, 2021 Indian Wells champion Paula Badosa and Madrid Open champion Ons Jabeur round out the top 5.
Nineteen-year-old Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que., is seeded 13th. Fernandez hasn’t played since sustaining a right foot injury in the quarterfinals of the French Open.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 1, 2022.
