In a stunning turn of events at the 2025 Canadian Open in Montreal, the tennis world witnessed an electrifying upset as 18-year-old Canadian wildcard Victoria Mboko dismantled top seed and world No. 2 Coco Gauff in a swift 6-1, 6-4 victory. The match, which lasted just 62 minutes, marked the biggest win of Mboko’s burgeoning career and sent shockwaves through the tournament, leaving fans and analysts buzzing about the young Canadian’s fearless performance and Gauff’s ongoing struggles.
Gauff, the reigning French Open champion and a two-time Grand Slam winner, entered the Canadian Open as the favorite, especially after world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka withdrew due to fatigue. Fresh off a triumphant clay season, including her second major title at Roland Garros, Gauff was expected to dominate the hard courts in Montreal, the first stop of the North American hard-court swing leading up to the US Open. However, her campaign in Canada has been anything but smooth, plagued by persistent serving issues that have haunted her throughout the tournament.
The match against Mboko exposed Gauff’s vulnerabilities from the outset. Mboko, ranked No. 85, came out swinging, breaking Gauff’s serve early and consolidating a 2-0 lead in the first set. The Canadian teenager relentlessly targeted Gauff’s forehand, a known weak spot, and capitalized on the American’s errors. Gauff struggled to find her rhythm, committing six double faults in the match, bringing her tournament total to a staggering 43 across three matches. “I haven’t played the best this tournament, so I knew that it would be tough,” Gauff admitted post-match, acknowledging Mboko’s aggressive play. “I just felt like I could do better today, but I also knew that if I took my foot off the gas a little bit, that she would take advantage of those moments, and she did.”
Mboko, playing in front of an enthusiastic home crowd, displayed remarkable composure for an 18-year-old. “Coming into this match, I was so locked in,” she said, her voice brimming with confidence. “I tried to keep my composure as much as I could, especially playing in front of so many people. This is a very special experience for me.” Her performance was a masterclass in precision, converting four of five break points and dropping just one set in her four matches at the tournament. Mboko’s meteoric rise is undeniable—she began 2025 ranked outside the top 300 and has now surged to No. 53 after her victory over Gauff, with a quarterfinal matchup against Jessica Bouzas Maneiro on the horizon.
Gauff’s struggles in Montreal have been a continuation of a troubling pattern. In her opening match, she battled past fellow American Danielle Collins in a grueling three-setter, overcoming 23 double faults to win 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(2). Her next match against Veronika Kudermetova was equally challenging, with 14 double faults and 53 unforced errors in another three-set victory (4-6, 7-5, 6-2). Despite these wins, Gauff expressed frustration with her serve, a shot that has been both her greatest weapon and her Achilles’ heel. “I felt that I was playing well except that part of my game,” she said after her Collins match, noting that recent changes to her serving grip, guided by coach Matt Daly, have yet to fully translate to match conditions.
Mboko’s victory was not just a personal triumph but a historic moment for Canadian tennis. At 18 years and 336 days, she became the youngest Canadian woman to defeat a Grand Slam champion at the Canadian Open. Her journey to this point has been remarkable—earlier this year, she won 22 consecutive matches without dropping a set on the ITF Tour, securing four titles and earning her WTA Tour main draw debut at the Miami Open. Her previous encounter with Gauff at the Italian Open in May was a tight three-set loss, but in Montreal, Mboko flipped the script, showcasing a newfound maturity and tactical acumen.
For Gauff, the loss to Mboko is a setback but not a career-defining moment. The 21-year-old has proven her resilience time and again, from her breakout at Wimbledon in 2019 to her US Open title in 2023 and WTA Finals victory in 2024. “I think she’s going to have a lot of success on tour,” Gauff graciously said of Mboko. “I’m sure we’re going to have many more battles in the future.” As she looks ahead to the Cincinnati Open and the US Open, Gauff remains optimistic about finding her rhythm on hard courts. “Maybe it was better to get more matches under my belt,” she reflected. “It’s the first tournament on the hard court season, so I’m hoping that in Cincy and in New York I can find that rhythm.”
The Canadian Open has long been a stage for surprises, and Mboko’s ascent adds another chapter to its storied history. As the tournament progresses, all eyes will be on whether the young Canadian can continue her dream run and whether Gauff can regroup to reclaim her dominance on the hard courts. For now, Montreal belongs to Victoria Mboko, a name tennis fans won’t soon forget.
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