One Step Closer?

Popyrin's hopes of a big tournament stay alive...

Alexei is technically the defending champion here in Montreal, since he won it last time in 2024. While he played a good match against Kokkinakis, it was quite a struggle against Burruchaga; he was even a set and a break down! Popyrin is serving exceptionally well so far, and that's a big plus, since a lot of other players are having some issues getting a lot of free points on serve here in Montreal. Now, for the bad part... his return and backhand were not good at all! I do think that these wins will help him build confidence, and if he can improve his baseline game, he can play really well here, with the way he is serving.

We last saw Collignon in the "double-altitude swing" at Gstaad and Kitzbühel. He managed to make the finals in Gstaad with some very gritty wins, without playing exceptionally. We know that the Belgian is a huge competitor, so he will give it his all and fight hard, even if he is not playing his best tennis. They have already faced off in Halle, not too long ago, with Collignon dominating Popyrin in a 6-4, 6-2 win. This was after Popyrin's upset loss to Svajda at Roland Garros and also where he lost tamely to Choinski and Lehecka shortly after, so we have to take that into account as well. Collignon's advantage in crosscourt backhand rallies, combined with the ability to go up the line with his backhand, could prove to be quite a headache for the Australian (making it harder for him to try and hit some FHs in the backhand corner). Besides that, Collignon is also somewhat clutch deep in sets, except for when he is double-faulting too much ;) Popyrin has the advantage of already having played two matches here, becoming used to conditions, and also, of course, the fact that he has performed very well here in the past...