Americans see mixed results in Canada: Madison Keys escapes match points as Frances Tiafoe Falls

The Americans returned to the courts in both Toronto and Montreal, with a hard-fought victory for Madison Keys over Karolina Muchova, saving a couple of match points, while Frances Tiafoe was eliminated on the same day at the hands of Alex de Minaur. Both Keys and Tiafoe had tough three-set battles.

This Sunday will determine the last four quarterfinalists for each draw who will continue to compete in the coming week. Keys is the only American so far in the quarterfinals, though the 5th seed Amanda Anisimova could still join her, as she faces Elina Svitolina in the night session.

On the men's side, Alex Michelsen leads the top half of the draw in the quarters, after defeating Learner Tien yesterday in an all-American showdown. Meanwhile, Ben Shelton and Taylor Fritz are still in contention for a spot in the final eight this afternoon, with matches against Flavio Cobolli (13th) and Jiri Lehecka (19th), respectively.

Frances Tiafoe fought hard but could not overcome the class of de Minaur and was eliminated in the Round of 16 in Toronto. The Australian was impressive at the start, getting two consecutive breaks and taking a 4-0 lead in under 20 minutes. Both had shown clear difficulties with their first serves—just 39% for Tiafoe and 38% for de Minaur—but the second serve was what made the difference, with a 26% success rate for "Big Foe" against 67% for his rival. De Minaur held onto his serve and took the set 6-2 after 38 minutes.

The second set saw irregularities from both sides on serve. Two cross-breaks for each player meant they reached 2-2 without having successfully defended their service game. The first to hold serve was Tiafoe, who took the lead in the set and, at 4-4, overcame a break point. In the next game, he seized a single break opportunity to take the set 6-4 and send it to a decider.

It was there that both had to manage their nerves. Despite having a first serve percentage of under 50%, they managed to maintain a high effectiveness. De Minaur won 68% of his service points compared to 70% for Tiafoe, who also hit five aces throughout the set (10 in the match). Things remained even until 4-4, after de Minaur saved a couple of break points midway through the set. Tiafoe conceded three opportunities late in the set, and de Minaur showed his resilience to fight for the win. A break, followed by a calm service game, gave him a 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 victory and a spot in the Canadian Open quarterfinals. His next challenge will be against the winner of Ben Shelton and Flavio Cobolli.

Madison Keys had a great day with her serve that allowed her to get the victory against a tough opponent like Muchova. The Czech, who has managed to return to the court in good form despite injuries, once again showed that when she is physically well, she is one of the most dangerous players on the Tour.

The American world No. 8 struggled in the first set, spending a large part of it a break down. After losing her serve at the start, she managed to level with a break that made it 3-3, but Muchova quickly broke back and took the lead again. This time, the Czech took advantage of her great serving effectiveness (winning 65% of service points compared to 52% for Keys) and closed out the set without too much trouble at 6-4.

In the second set, Keys managed to recover and was almost unstoppable on her serve: an 89% first serve percentage, winning 76% of those points; against a poor 52% first serve from Muchova, who only won 53% of them. There were clear changes in Muchova's ability to impose herself in short points with her serve, and she was outpaced at times by the power of her rival. A single break in the fourth game was enough for the 2025 Australian Open champion to hold onto her serve, and this time, Keys took the set 6-3.

Everything was ready for the deciding set, which offered the most tension. An early break helped Keys take a 2-0 lead, but Muchova reacted with three straight games that brought her back into the set, after saving a 0-40 at 2-2. The match remained even, with a very focused Muchova on serve. She took a 5-4 lead and had two break opportunities on Keys's serve—two match points for the former French Open runner-up—but she couldn't convert them. The Czech failed to seize her chances and allowed a comeback from the American in the final moments. The world No. 8 won four of the last five games and ended up with a complicated 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 victory, guaranteeing her spot in the quarterfinals. Her next opponent will be decided between Clara Tauson and Iga Swiatek, who will play in the night session in Montreal.