[MONTREAL, QC] November 9, 2024 – On Saturday, Gabriela Dabrowski made history when she became the first Canadian woman to win a WTA Finals title. The Ottawa native and her partner Erin Routliffe, a New Zealander who grew up in Canada and trained at the National Tennis Centre, defeated Olympic gold medallist Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend in straight sets (7-5, 6-3).
In Riyadh, Dabrowski and Routliffe (2) registered a perfect record in the round-robin, racking up a win over Olympic champions and fourth seeds Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini (1-6, 7-6(1), 11-9), exacting revenge on Caroline Dolehide and Desirae Krawczyk (5) who ousted them from the National Bank Open last August (4-6, 6-3, 10-6) and then securing the top spot in their group with a victory over seventh seeds Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova (7-6(6), 6-4).
In the semifinal, which was a reprise of last year’s, Dabrowski and Routliffe managed to get the upper hand over Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Ellen Perez. And in the final against Wimbledon titleholders Siniakova and Townsend, respectively ranked No.1 and No.9 in doubles, Dabrowski and Routliffe set the pace and imposed their team chemistry to secure the prestigious WTA Finals trophy for the first time in their careers.
Denis Shapovalov reigns over Belgrade
Meanwhile in Belgrade, Denis Shapovalov competed in the final of the ATP 250 Serbia Open. The 25year-old Canadian, who was ranked No.78 at the beginning of the week, had to fight through the qualifying rounds for a spot in the main draw.
His only three-setter came in the first round against Marton Fucsovics, who also survived the qualifiers (67(6), 7-5, 6-1). From then on, Shapovalov dominated the competition. He stunned fifth seed Nuno Borges (6-2, 6-4), eliminated Christopher O’Connell (6-2, 6-2) and then liquidated No.31 Jiri Lehecka (4) in two quick sets in the semifinal (6-2, 6-1).
In the ultimate showdown, the Canadian battled Hamad Medjedovic, a Serbian who took full advantage of his bye to reach the final after upsetting Francisco Cerundolo (3) and Brandon Nakashima (6). Denis fought hard to secure a 6-4, 6-4 win and earn his second ATP title after netting his first in Stockholm in 2019. Serbian hero Novak Djokovic was on hand to present him with the winner’s trophy. Shapovalov is now one step closer to the ATP Top 50 since he’ll start next week at No.56.
“The week was great. To be able to come through the qualies and beat a lot of really good players to get to the final gives me a lot of confidence going into next season. I was expecting a tough match today. I think Hamad did a lot of things really well, especially his serve, and he made it really tough for me. I had some luck and took my chances. As far as this year, I’m just really happy to be back healthy and competing a full season. After coming back from a serious injury last year, I knew it would take playing a lot of tournaments and time to get my ranking back, and this week really helps. So after Davis Cup, I’ll start my preseason and get ready to continue the momentum next year,” Denis Shapovalov said after the match.
About Tennis Canada
Founded in 1890, Tennis Canada is a non-profit, national sport association with a mission to lead the growth, development and promotion of tennis in Canada and a vision to be a world-leading tennis nation. We value teamwork, passion, integrity, innovation and excellence. Tennis Canada owns and operates the premier National Bank Open presented by Rogers WTA and ATP Tour events, four professional ATP and ITF sanctioned events and financially supports four other professional tournaments in Canada. Tennis Canada operates junior national training centres/programs in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Tennis Canada is a proud member of the International Tennis Federation, the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Committee, and serves to administer, sponsor and select the teams for Davis Cup, Billie Jean King Cup, the Olympic and Paralympic Games and all wheelchair, junior and senior national teams. Tennis Canada invests its surplus into tennis development. For more information on Tennis Canada please visit our website at: www.tenniscanada.com and follow us on LinkedIn, X, Facebook and Instagram.
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