Montreal Masters Begins Today

One of the marquee events of the North American hard-court swing, the National Bank Open, gets underway today at IGA Stadium in Montreal. Running from August 1-13, the 136th edition of this mandatory ATP Masters 1000 tournament sees world No. 2 Alexander Zverev enter as the top seed. The German lifted the trophy here back in 2017 and reached the semi-finals in Toronto last season.

The tournament's biggest storyline is home favourite Felix Auger-Aliassime. The 25-year-old, born in Montreal, is eyeing a chance to capture his maiden ATP Masters 1000 title on home soil and enters as the No. 2 seed. Alex de Minaur, Daniil Medvedev and defending champion Ben Shelton round out the remaining top-five seeds. Shelton returns hoping to prove last year's surprise title run was no fluke.

One of the most notable aspects of this year's edition is the absence of the sport's biggest names. Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are all skipping Montreal, leaving the draw wide open and presenting one of the biggest opportunities of the season for the chasing pack. The draw was made on Friday, July 31. This year's field also includes rising names in good recent form, such as Joao Fonseca, Rafael Jodar and Alexander Blockx.

The women's event runs the same week in Toronto at Sobeys Stadium, as the two cities alternate hosting duties each year. Last year's women's champion, Victoria Mboko, will also be on court in Toronto defending her title.

Image: Punto de Break