[TORONTO, ON] November 10, 2024 – On Sunday, the M25 Saint-Augustin tournament came to a close as Liam Draxl (Newmarket, ON) defeated compatriot Alexis Galarneau (Laval, QC), 6-1, 6-3 to win the third edition of the event held in Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, Quebec. In doubles, the Czech duo of Filip Duda and David Poljak triumphed over Americans Alfredo Perez and Jamie Vance.
It was a memorable week for Draxl, who entered the event as the tournament’s No. 1 seed. The current world No. 236 won all of his matches in straight sets, none of them being particularly close. His most tightly contested match was a 6-3, 6-3 victory in the second round against American Strong Kirchheimer. With the title in Saint-Augustin, Draxl now has six titles on the season – two in singles and four in doubles. It also marks his fourth tournament win on home soil since the beginning of his professional career.
In today’s final, Draxl got the better of fellow Canadian Galarneau (No. 216), who accepted a wild card to take part in the event in his home province. The Newmarket native got off to an excellent start right out of the gate, as he had done all week, winning the first set 6-1 in just over half an hour. Draxl carried that momentum into the second set, breaking Galarneau early on before clinching the win on his first match point in the ninth game. Surprisingly, this was the first meeting on the professional circuit between the two young Canucks.
In the doubles draw, second seeds Duda and Poljak narrowly beat unseeded duo Perez and Vance by a score of 6-4, 6-7(4), 11-9. This was their second title as a team.
Rebecca Marino wins first WTA singles title
Elsewhere on Sunday, Rebecca Marino (Vancouver, BC) claimed the Dow Tennis Classic title – a WTA 125 event – after beating Alycia Park of the United States. In the opening set of the championship match, Marino fought off a break point in the very first game. From then on, it was smooth sailing for the Vancouverite, who won the match 6-2, 6-1 in less than an hour.
Marino has now won five titles in 2024, four of which were in singles. She now heads to Malaga, Spain, as Team Canada prepares to defend their title at the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Finals.
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