Auger-Aliassime to face qualifier, Raonic draws Tiafoe in 1st round of National Bank Open

 

Auger-Aliassime to face qualifier, Raonic draws Tiafoe in 1st round of National Bank Open



Montreal's Felix Auger-Aliassime, pictured at Wimbledon last month, is the highest-ranked Canadian at No. 12 in the world. (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)

A field stacked with most of the ATP Tour's top young stars — anchored by top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz — has National Bank Open tournament director Karl Hale feeling bullish about the 2023 edition of the event in Toronto.

"It's just a blockbuster draw with some great, great matches," Hale said Friday after the matchups were finalized.

The so-called Big Three were mainstays at this Masters 1000 Series competition for years. But Roger Federer has retired, Rafael Nadal is injured and Novak Djokovic is out due to fatigue.

That gives Alcaraz — who recently outlasted Djokovic to win his first Wimbledon title — as the main headliner in a 56-man draw that includes fellow youngsters Felix Auger-Aliassime of Montreal, Italy's Jannik Sinner, Denmark's Holger Rune and Norway's Casper Ruud.

"We've kind of moved from the Big Three to the next generation with Novak still holding on," Hale said. "It's a new era."

Nine of the top 10 players in the ATP Tour world rankings are entered in the $7.62-million US tournament.

Auger-Aliassime, the world No. 12, is the highest-seeded Canadian at No. 10. He'll play a qualifier in his opening match at Sobeys Stadium.


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