Emma Raducanu has brought her fine hard-court form from Washington to Montreal, and she looks set to face her biggest test yet in the third round.
The 2021 US Open champion, who was a semi-finalist in DC last week, delivered a strong display to see off world No 37 Peyton Stearns 6-2, 6-4 in the second round in Canada on Wednesday.
In her opening match at the WTA 1000 event, Raducanu beat her good friend Elena-Gabriela Ruse by the same scoreline, and she will next take on another player she is close to: Amanda Anisimova.
Anisimova is at a career-high ranking of world No 7 after her recent Wimbledon runner-up result, which was her maiden Grand Slam final appearance.
It will be Raducanu‘s third encounter with the 23-year-old American, and she leads the head-to-head 2-0, with both previous clashes also played on hard courts.
The 22-year-old Brit won their first match 6-3, 7-5 in the second round of the Australian Open in January after battling back from being a break down in both sets.
In the second showdown, Raducanu dominated to prevail 6-1, 6-3 in the last 16 of the Miami Open in March.
What have Raducanu and Anisimova said about each other?
Prior to that first meeting in Melbourne, Raducanu and Anisimova both spoke about their friendship.
Raducanu: “Usually when we’re hanging out, we’re not talking about tennis.
“I think it’s good to keep it that way. I think we’re going to be playing each other many more times in the future. This is the first time.
“I think she’s a tough opponent. She took some time out, obviously, off the tour, for sort of mental health reasons and just to find herself again.”
Anisimova: “She’s a friend of mine so it will be a bit interesting but I’m sure that we will both give it our all and I’m looking forward to the battle.
“We’ve both been around the tour. We’re the same age. We also have a mutual friend, Priscilla Hon. We’ve hung out a few times all together. She’s a nice girl.
“She’s always bringing a good energy into the room. Also an amazing competitor.”
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Following her win in Australia, Raducanu said: “It’s incredibly difficult whenever you play a friend. It adds another dimension to the match, and not necessarily a pleasant one. It’s really difficult to put all things off court aside, but I managed to do a great job today.
“She’s such an amazing opponent who has had so many big wins, so I knew I had to fight hard, raise my game and not go away in the second set even when the chips were down. I’m just really pleased and I wished her all the best.”
After the match in Miami, where Anisimova was troubled by her wrist, Raducanu said: “Playing Amanda is never easy, she’s had some amazing wins, top 20 and won a Masters this year.
“She’s playing great tennis and I hope her wrist, or something, is okay. I felt something was maybe going down on the other side.
“And, it’s really difficult to stay focused when your opponent is making some errors and then all of a sudden, [is] just blasting the lines and winners, and you have no idea what’s going on!
“I think those matches, it’s almost tougher to stay so ‘on’ the whole time, because when things are, in a way, more ‘normal’, you have to be locked in every single point. I’m really proud of how I came through that.”
When will Anisimova and Raducanu’s Canadian Open match take place?
The third round matchup between Anisimova and Raducanu in Canada is expected to be played on Friday, with the order of play yet to be confirmed.
The winner of the match will face either 10th seed Elina Svitolina or 31st-ranked Anna Kalinskaya in the last 16.
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