Alcaraz grinds in Murcia, De Minaur’s classy message to Davidovich and Auger-Aliassime pays tribute to retiring Pospisil in new social media buzz

Another day in the hardcourt swing and ATP and WTA stars are also stealing the spotlight on social media. Carlos Alcaraz is not yet back on the courts but grabbed attention training in Murcia. The start of the Canadian Open was marked by the retirement of Vasek Pospisil, who received a heartfelt tribute from his colleague Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Alex de Minaur also showed a classy gesture to a fellow player after defeating Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the DC Open final, leaving him once again at the doorstep of his first professional title, a similar situation to what Anna Kalinskaya experienced, who also took to social media to share images of her week in Washington.

Félix Auger-Aliassime paid a small tribute on social media to his compatriot Vasek Pospisil after he played his last professional tournament at the Canadian Open. The former world No. 6 congratulated who he considered his 'role model' and his Davis Cup teammate in Team Canada, where they joined forces in various series and even played doubles together. Pospisil, 35, recently announced that Toronto would host his last professional tournament and received a wildcard for the main draw, where he ended up falling to Argentine Facundo Bagnis 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, marking his last professional match.

Felix dedicated a tribute to his colleague and friend, with a series of photos together that he shared on his social media. "From a role model, to a partner, to a competitor, to a teammate, and now a great friend. Thank you Vasek for all these years of giving so much passion to our sport," Felix wrote. "It was a pleasure to share the court with you and to make Canadian tennis history together. Congrats to you and your family for defying the odds and having a career that only a few can achieve. Now time to look back and be very proud of what has been accomplished."

Carlos Alcaraz will not be competing this week at the Canadian Open, but he is not neglecting his work and appeared in a recent video training in Murcia, under the expectant gaze of dozens of children who gathered to get a closer look at the world No. 2. The Spanish tennis player last appeared at Wimbledon two weeks ago, where he reached the final and ended up falling to Jannik Sinner in four sets, missing out on a third consecutive crown. The Italian snapped Carlitos' 20-match winning streak at SW19, and also got revenge for the previous five consecutive defeats against Alcaraz – including the Roland Garros final a month prior.

Alcaraz quickly went from the best winning streak of his career – a total of 24 matches – to being surpassed by the Italian Sinner, who reignited the rivalry by overcoming Alcaraz precisely in the tournament where he seemed practically invincible. Heading into the hardcourt swing, things take on a new order, and with a surface that might suit Sinner more, Alcaraz knows he will have many things to improve to rival the Italian again. The Spaniard will spend the next few days training in Murcia before traveling to the Cincinnati Open, for his only hardcourt tournament before the US Open.

Alex De Minaur left an emotional message on social media to his colleague Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, after defeating him in the DC Open final. The Australian saved three match points in the third set and ended up securing an agonizing victory, causing distress to the Spaniard, who was particularly affected after losing the fourth final of his career – his third of the season – and still remaining without an ATP title.

Davidovich had had an impeccable tournament, leaving two top-10 players in his wake: locals Taylor Fritz (1st seed) and Ben Shelton (4th seed). He reached the final playing at a high level and in the third set touched glory when he had three match points in his favor, but De Minaur managed to come through and achieve a comeback that resulted in his 10th professional title. De Minaur showed a classy gesture towards Davidovich by consoling him after the match, and reiterated his praise this time on social media.

"What a special week in D.C. 🇺🇸🏆 Happy to claim my 10th ATP title! Thanks for all the support throughout the week — you guys are the best 🙌 Big respect to @aledavidovichofficial for a great final battle 💪"

Another player who had to overcome a painful defeat was Anna Kalinskaya, who fell convincingly 1-6, 2-6 to Leylah Fernandez and, for the third time in her career, lost in a final. The Russian is another player who, despite having reached a high ranking position – her best ranking was No. 14 a year ago – has yet to win a WTA singles title.

The Russian nonetheless shared some photos focusing on the positive side after the defeat and hoping for better things to come in the rest of the hardcourt swing. "What a week it’s been in DC🙂‍↔️ not the the result I wanted but still making the final is a nice feeling 💪🏽🥈 soon ✈️ 🇨🇦"