Daniil Medvedev and Emma Raducanu suffer shock exits at Canadian Open

By SABC Sport
2nd August 2025

Concerns continue to grow over the form of former World No 1 Daniil Medvedev following his latest defeat at the Canadian Open.

The Russian was beaten in third-round action in Toronto on Thursday night, falling 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 to 18th seed and defending champion Alexei Popyrin.

Medvedev's defeat means he now holds a 26-16 record for 2025, as he continues to struggle to rediscover his form.

Medvedev was beaten in the opening round of the French Open and Wimbledon this summer, and was also beaten in the second round of the Australian Open in January.

The Russian is down at 14th in the ATP Rankings, his lowest ranking since 2019, and has not won an ATP Tour title since the Italian Open in May 2023.

Hard-court tennis has been Medvedev's happiest hunting ground throughout his career, though a surprise quarter-final loss to Corentin Moutet at the Citi DC Open has now been followed by an early exit in Toronto.

The World No 14 attracted further criticism for smashing his racket on court after falling to Moutet in Washington, while he walked off court in Toronto without collecting his belongings on Thursday.

Medvedev's struggles in recent months contrast greatly with the form that saw him win the 2021 US Open title and spend 16 weeks as the world No 1, alongside reaching a further five major finals.

Following his Canadian Open exit, Medvedev is set to return to action at the Cincinnati Open, which gets underway next week.

The 29-year-old triumphed at the tournament in 2019 and reached back-to-back semi-finals in 2021 and 2022, though was beaten in the third round in 2023, and in round two in 2024.

Meanwhile, Emma Raducanu's Canadian Open campaign came to a sudden halt on Friday night thanks to a heavy defeat to Amanda Anisimova.

Wimbledon finalist and world No 7 Anisimova had fallen to Raducanu at both the Australian Open and Miami Open in 2025, though she outclassed her rival in a 6-2, 6-1 triumph in Montreal.

The match took just 64 minutes to complete and brought Raducanu's campaign to a surprisingly quick end, following comfortable wins over Elena-Gabriela Ruse in round one, and then Peyton Stearns in round two.