Sunday features four championship matches: two in singles, and two in doubles. In Montreal, the singles final is a rematch from just a few weeks ago at the Tokyo Olympics, where Italy’s Camila Giorgi stunned Karolina Pliskova. In Toronto, Daniil Medvedev has reached his second consecutive Canada Masters final, and faces his second consecutive tall, American “Servebot.”
Each day, this preview will analyze the most intriguing men’s and women’s matchup, while highlighting other notable matches on the schedule. Sunday’s play gets underway at 1:30pm local time.
Karolina Pliskova (4) vs. Camila Giorgi – 1:30pm on Centre Court in Montreal
Last month in Tokyo, Giorgi comfortably prevailed 6-4, 6-2. That’s part of a run where she has claimed 13 of 17 matches. Historically known as a one-dimensional player who hits the ball hard every time, her game has evolved. As Jason Goodall and Lindsey Davenport broke down on Tennis Channel, she is now more patient in rallies, often waiting until she is in a winning position to go for a winner. Overall her head-to-head with Pliskova has become pretty tight. Karolina leads 5-3, but Giorgi has now taken the last two, which also includes a match two months ago on the grass of Eastbourne. That was just a week before Pliskova’s run to the Wimbledon final. After a stretch of some subpar results, the 29-year-old Czech has rediscovered her confidence, winning 12 of her last 14 matches. But the fact that two of her three most recent losses came at the hands of Giorgi will certainly be present in her mind. However, this will easily be the biggest match of Camila’s career, as she had never advanced beyond the fourth round of a WTA 1000 event before this week. And she’s only 2-6 lifetime in WTA finals. As much as this has been a matchup issue for Pliskova of late, her vast edge in experience at this level, paired her serving prowess, should be enough to earn her first title in over 18 months.
Daniil Medvedev (1) vs. Reilly Opelka – Not Before 8:00pm on Stadium Court in Toronto
The aforementioned “Servebot” term has been used publicly by Opelka this week, which by his own definition, is a player who holds serve frequently and is “a little bit miserable to watch.” It seemed this was said a bit tongue-in-cheek, to be clear, but the fact remains the near-seven-feet-tall 23-year-old has a booming serve that can dominate proceedings. But his compatriot John Isner does as well, and it was completely ineffective against Medvedev in the semifinals, who prevailed 6-2, 6-2 in just an hour. Opelka has plenty more to his game than just a serve that can frustrate opponents, like his forehand and volleying skills. Stefanos Tsitsipas appeared infuriated by his inability to figure out a way to dismantle Reilly’s game on Saturday. But maintaining that level for a second straight day, in the biggest match of your career, and against the winningest hard court player of the last 12 months, will be a daunting task. Since the Paris Masters last November, Medvedev is 24-4 on this surface. And since January of 2018, this is his 16th hard court final. The Russian is 3-1 against the American, including a straight-set victory earlier this season at Roland Garros. While Opelka did defeat Medvedev on a hard court last fall in St. Petersburg, Daniil is the favorite to win his fourth Masters 1000 title.
Other Notable Matches on Sunday:
Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic (1) vs. Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury (3) – Mektic and Pavic are in the midst of an historic season. They play on Sunday for their tenth title of the year, and their 57th match win. These teams have faced each other four times in 2021, with Mektic and Pavic claiming all four of those matches, and nine of 10 sets contested.
Gabriela Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani (5) vs. Darija Jurak and Andreja Klepac (6) – This is a rematch from the final just last week in San Jose, where Jurak and Klepac prevailed in straight sets. Stefani is also coming off a thrilling run to the bronze medal in women’s doubles at the Olympics.
Sunday’s full Order of Play is here.
