Félix first

It’s hard to say whether the sunshine on Wednesday at the National Bank Open presented by Rogers was a good thing or a bad thing. After two days of rain, the clouds lifted and apparently settled right over the scoreboard. And we’ve all seen the result.

For Montréal to lose its top three seeds—Daniil Medvedev, Carlos Alcaraz and Stefanos Tsitsipas—so early is a first in 41 years that fans could’ve done without.

Still, conspiracy theorists need to calm down. From the moment they arrived, the biggest names in men’s tennis have had nothing but praise for the atmosphere in Montréal. And why would they have extended their suffering to three sets if there was a private jet waiting for them at the airport?

Bettered by someone better—for now

The truth is that Medvedev, despite his win in Mexico last Saturday, had an unlucky draw that pitted him against Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios, who’s playing a lot better than the No.1 at the moment.

Indeed, the Australian enfant terrible is currently the best player in the world, with a 14-0 record since Wimbledon. Let’s face it, a Wimbledon final against Novak Djokovic and the singles and doubles titles in Washington are no small feats.

No.1 under pressure

Medvedev lost a lot more than a match on Wednesday. As the defending champion, he left 990 of 1,000 ATP points on the court. How long will he stay on top when Alexander Zverev is back in action?

Maybe that’s the changing of the guard going on in men’s tennis right now?

As far as this week, let’s hope Félix keeps his nerves in check as he did on Wednesday night in front of the cheering crowd and keeps winning. Could IGA Stadium even contain an Auger-Aliassime–Kyrgios semi on Saturday? 

P.S.: Don’t fret about the level of tennis. There are more three-setters than ever.