Canadian teen Mboko reaches Montreal final, beating Rybakina in 3rd-set tiebreaker

By Canadian Press on August 6, 2025.

MONTREAL (AP) — Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko rallied to reach the National Bank Open final, beating ninth-seeded Elena Rybakina 1-6, 7-5, 7-6 (4) on Wednesday night.

The 18-year-old Mboko, ranked 85th in the world, is seeking her first WTA Tour title. On Thursday night, she’ll face the winner of the second semifinal between Japanese star Naomi Osaka and 16th-seeded Clara Tauson of Denmark.

From Toronto, Mboko started the year ranked outside the top 300. She upset top-seeded Coco Gauff 6-1, 6-4 on Saturday to reach the quarterfinals, then topped Jessica Bouzas Maneiro 6-4, 6-2 on Monday.

From Kazakhstan, Rybakina won at Wimbledon in 2022. She has nine career WTA Tour victories, winning in May on clay at Strasbourg.

Rybakina beat Mboko 6-3, 7-5 last month in Washington.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

The Associated Press