TORONTO — Kayla Cross from Canada celebrates her inaugural WTA triumph!
Hailing from London, Ontario, Cross pulled off a stunning upset against Britain’s Katie Boulter, winning 7-6 (3), 7-5, and advancing to the second round of the National Bank Open presented by Rogers.
This marks Cross’s third tour match, and as a wild card entry, she is set to compete next against the U.S. No. 28 seed, Ann Li.
On Monday, five Canadians were slated to take to the courts at York University.
McCartney Kessler from the U.S. secured a decisive 6-3, 6-3 victory over Oakville’s Cadence Brace.
Bianca Andreescu of Mississauga, Ontario, who ended a 50-year Canadian drought by winning the NBO in 2019, faced off against Czechia’s Nikola Bartunkova. Meanwhile, Carol Zhao from Richmond Hill took to the court against Poland’s Magda Linette, and Vancouver’s Rebecca Marino was set to clash with Turkey’s Zeynep Sonmez.
Encouraged by a passionate home crowd on center court, the 21-year-old Cross overcame four set points in the first set before breaking Boulter, who ranks No. 69 globally, at 5-5 in the second and serving out for a memorable win.
After a first-round exit last summer at the NBO in Montreal, Cross has made an impressive leap, starting this year ranked 172 after being at No. 262 just a year ago.
Leylah Fernandez, the sole seeded Canadian at No. 30 in the women’s tournament, is gearing up to play her first match on Wednesday.
