While there is a bit of a wait between the opening Grand Slam and the second one of a season, the gaps between the French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open are much shorter.
The titles were handed out at the third Grand Slam of the season earlier this month, but the Canadian Masters has begun and is a big part of the build up towards the US Open.
Cincinnati is another big stop between now and the final Grand Slam of the season beginning in New York City, but the focus is on this expanded tournament which is split between venues in Toronto and Montreal,
Some big names are missing out and should be ready to return when Cincinnati begins, but that means there is a chance to put a confidence building tournament in the books for those involved. Big Ranking points can also be earned ahead of two more important tournaments coming up in the next few weeks and there are still many players involved who will feel they are genuine contenders to win the next Major.
Brandon Nakashima - 2.5 games v Ethan Quinn: The build up to the final Grand Slam of the season continues with the Canadian Masters one of two big events before the US Open gets underway in New York City.
For those playing in the ATP event in Toronto, it does feel like a big opportunity has opened up with some many of the top names missing.
Players like Brandon Nakashima have a chance to pick up valuable Ranking points that may mean a Seed at his home Grand Slam event and the 23 year old arrives having reached the Quarter Final in Washington. His run was only ended by eventual Champion Alex De Minaur and Brandon Nakashima continues to be a player who is well suited to the hard courts, but perhaps not quite ready to become the latest American to have a really deep run in a Grand Slam event.
There is nothing much wrong with the serving numbers, but Brandon Nakashima may be the first to admit that he has not found the consistency he may have hoped when it comes to the return. The numbers on that side of the court have remained steady on this surface, but Nakashima would have hoped to have shown better signs of development.
It also should be noted that Brandon Nakashima has really struggled when it comes to playing those he is not expected to beat compared with those that he will feel he is favoured against. The service numbers are decent enough when facing higher Ranked players, but the return is really problematic in those matches, whereas the World Number 32 has been so much better when facing those Ranked lower than himself.
Fortunately for Brandon Nakashima, that is the case in this Second Round match ahainst compatriot Ethan Quinn who reached his career high World Ranking mark of Number 82 earlier this month.
Much like so many players from the United States, Ethan Quinn is very comfortable on the hard courts, although his numbers are still a work in progress. At 21 years old and without the experiences of others, that is not a big surprise and it has been tough work for Ethan Quinn when facing top 100 Ranked opponents, even on a familiar surface like this one.
Earlier in the year, Ethan Quinn did take a set from Tommy Paul in Dallas, while he has beaten Christoper O'Connell in the First Round in Toronto. However, Quinn was second best when facing Brandon Nakashima last week in Washington and it does feel like the higher Ranked American is going to be able to frank that victory with another north of the border.
Ethan Quinn has served well in the matches against the top 100 Ranked opponents he has faced, but the return has not really made the kind of impact he would have hoped. It was the case when losing to Brandon Nakashima in Washington and eventually the scoreboard pressure and feeling that 'you must hold at all costs' can wear on an inexperienced player.
The spread is potentially hazardous when you think of some of the issues Brandon Nakashima has had on return, but he was able to exert enough pressure in the win in the last tournament and can likely do the same here.
Amanda Anisimova - 5.5 games v Lulu Sun: Any player who reaches the Final of a Grand Slam is very successful at their job, but there is no doubt that the Wimbledon Final would have been a really tough experience for Amanda Anisimova.
She will look back at the grass court season with a real fondness and she enters the top ten of the World Rankings for the first time.
However, this is the first match back since the Wimbledon Final when the American failed to win a match and she will need the fans to get behind her.
The return takes place in Montreal and Amanda Anisimova is a very comfortable hard court player, while she may benefit from facing Lulu Sun who has really had a very difficult year on the surface.
The 24 year old was within the top 40 in the World Rankings ten months ago, but Lulu Sun has slipped all the way back to World Number 97 as the lossed have piled up. It is important to have won her First Round match and Sun has the chance to turn things back around, but the lower Ranked player is just 4-10 on the hard courts in 2025 and this is a significant challenge for her, especially if Amanda Anisimova has overcome what happened in London earlier in the month.
Lulu Sun is a lefty and the serve has been a solid weapon for her, but she has struggled to make an impact on the return and that could show up in this Second Round match.
It may take a set for Amanda Anisimova to settle on the court, but she can move through the gears with her aggressive returning and the serve to contain the threat from the other side of the net. Covering will not be easy, but the American may return with a confident win and one that reminds the rest of the field about the yeat that Amanda Anisimova has been putting together.
Naomi Osaka v Liudmila Samsonova: She clearly was not very happy with some of the questions posed to her after the defeat in Washington, but Naomi Osaka will be looking to make her biggest impact on the court at the Canadian Masters.
There has been enough time since Naomi Osaka returned to the court to have expected her to have a stronger World Ranking than her current mark.
Inconsistency continues to blight her tennis, even if the numbers have been strong and Naomi Osaka will be keen to put some strong results together in what should be her strongest surface. It may have been a while, but Osaka does hold four hard court Grand Slam titles and the style is well suited to those in North America.
She was a pretty comfortable winner in the First Round, but Naomi Osaka has not had the kind of impact on the Tour as she would have hoped.
However, there is an opportunity to reach the Third Round here in Montreal when Naomi Osaka takes on Liudmila Samsonova, even though the latter was able to win their most recent match on the grass courts in the build towards Wimbledon. That was a match that Osaka will feel she should have won, while the former World Number 1 has beaten the current World Number 16 twice on the hard courts of North America in Indian Wells (2024) and Miami (2025).
Naomi Osaka has been dominant in those wins, while Liudmila Samsonova has not been producing the strongest numbers on the hard courts over the last eighteen months.
The higher Ranked player is a solid hard court performer, but Samsonova may struggle to get into the Naomi Osaka service games, while also having a vulnerable second serve that can be attacked.
Too often Naomi Osaka has been in a position to win matches that she has lost, but the confidence will be there within this match up thanks to the two hard court wins produced over Liudmila Samsonova.
That should be a factor in this Second Round match and the former World Number 1 can come out on top.
Jessica Pegula - 3.5 games v Maria Sakkari: This is going to be the twelfth time that Jessica Pegula and Maria Sakkari are facing each other and it is the American who has been getting the better of the recent matches.
The hard courts are a very comfortable surface for Jessica Pegula, but consistency has long been her biggest problem at the biggest events.
She did reach the US Open Final last year and that means Jessica Pegula has a lot of Ranking points to defend in the next six weeks, but one Fourth Round in three Grand Slams is a disappointing return in 2025. After winning a title on the grass, Pegula would not have expected to have been dumped out of Wimbledon in the First Round and the window does feel like it is closing as far as winning a Major is concerned.
An early loss in Washington is far from ideal preparation, but overall the hard court successes in 2025 makes Jessica Pegula a favourite to move into the Third Round.
Jessica Pegula may be older than Maria Sakkari, but the decline of the latter has been much sharper and she is now playing as the World Number 72. It is imperative for Maria Sakkari to begin to turn that around and avoid having to Qualify for some of the bigger events on the Tour and she does need to back up her Quarter Final run in Washington last week.
Holding a 9-12 record on the hard courts, Maria Sakkari has to find a way to break through the Pegula defences without losing her own consistency.
Ultimately she has not been returning as well as her opponent and Maria Sakkari has a second serve that can be exploited.
The second serve has been attacked relentlessly by Jessica Pegula in the three most recent meetings, all on the hard courts, and that has seen the American dominate those matches. The most recent came earlier this year before the Australian Open and Jessica Pegula looks capable of getting back to winning ways against an old rival who has not been playing with the same kind of consistency as she once did.
MY PICKS: Brandon Nakashima - 2.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet365 (1 Unit)
Amanda Anisimova - 5.5 Games @ 1.91 Sky Bet (1 Unit)
Naomi Osaka @ 1.83 Bet Victor (1 Unit)
Jessica Pegula - 3.5 Games @ 1.87 Bet Victor (1 Unit)
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