Canadian Preview Australian Open 2026 Second Round | Mboko and Shapovalov carry the flag amid early Canadian exits

With the first round of the Australian Open completed, Canadian players did not enjoy much luck, as only one Canadian remains alive in each of the women’s and men’s singles draws.

Teenager Victoria Mboko lived up to expectations, advancing with an impressive victory over 17-year-old local star Emerson Jones. On the men’s side, Denis Shapovalov carried the flag for Canada, defeating wildcard Bu Yunchaokete in straight sets to set up a clash against former US Open champion Marin Cilic.

However, the overall balance was negative for Canada, which suffered early exits from its top representatives, including seventh seed Félix Auger-Aliassime due to injury and 23rd seed Leylah Fernandez. Of the seven Canadian players who started the main draws, only two remain in contention.

Victoria Mboko (No. 16) continues to establish herself as one of the most exciting young stars in today’s women’s game. She showed no hesitation in claiming a convincing first-round win over 17-year-old Emerson Jones, the former junior world No. 1.

The Canadian arrived in Melbourne after a demanding week in Adelaide, where she reached the final before falling to Mirra Andreeva. Despite the short turnaround and limited rest, Mboko was not affected and delivered a solid debut victory, 6–4, 6–1.

She will face American Caty McNally (No. 85) in the second round on Wednesday. McNally reached the second round in Melbourne for the third time in her career after defeating Japan’s Hime Sakatsume in straight sets, and she will be looking to pull off a major upset against an inspired Mboko.

Mboko has been in excellent form since the latter part of 2025, winning 12 of her last 14 matches. This marks her first-ever appearance in the Australian Open main draw, and she is already reaping the ranking rewards of her strong start to the season. She currently sits at No. 13 in the live rankings. While reaching the top 10 would require at least a semifinal run, she has no points to defend in the coming months, meaning every win brings her closer to joining the elite group of the world’s top players.

Denis Shapovalov (No. 23) has endured several seasons without making a strong impression at Grand Slam tournaments and is hoping to turn things around at the start of the 2026 season. He entered the tournament as the 21st seed — his best seeding since the 2023 Australian Open — and enjoyed a smooth debut, snapping a two-match losing streak to open the year.

The former top-10 player took full advantage of his favouritism against Bu Yunchaokete (No. 120), who has struggled to replicate last year’s form and has spent more time on the Challenger circuit and in qualifying draws than in main draws of major events.

Shapovalov overwhelmed his opponent with consistency on serve, winning 87% of points behind his first serve and 77% on his second, while firing 10 aces without committing a single double fault.

The Canadian now faces a tough challenge against Croatia’s Marin Čilić (No. 66), who has enjoyed something of a resurgence in recent months. Čilić demonstrated his competitive spirit by reaching the fourth round at last year’s Wimbledon, and his emphatic first-round win over Daniel Altmaier (6–0, 6–0, 7–6) showcased his current level. The Croatian struck 20 aces and won 88% of points on first serve in that match.

Shapovalov leads the head-to-head 3–2, although nearly five years have passed since their last meeting, which came in the quarter-finals of the 2021 Stuttgart Open on grass.

It was a disappointing start to the Australian Open for Canada, particularly with the early exit of its leading representative, seventh seed Félix Auger-Aliassime. The Canadian was forced to retire from his first-round match against Nuno Borges due to a left leg injury. Auger-Aliassime appeared to be one of the few players capable of seriously challenging the dominance of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, but he will have to wait for his next opportunity at future majors.

Another surprise came with the defeat of Leylah Fernandez, who fell in a high-quality contest against Janice Tjen, losing 6–2, 7–6(1). The former US Open finalist fought hard — especially in a second set she refused to give up — but the young Indonesian produced an impressive level to eliminate Fernandez.

Fernandez continues to struggle at Grand Slams. In her last 14 main-draw appearances, she has reached the third round just three times and has not advanced to the fourth round since Roland Garros 2022, where she made the quarter-finals.

Other first-round casualties included Gabriel Diallo, who was overmatched by world No. 3 Alexander Zverev (6–7, 6–1, 6–4, 6–2), and qualifier Liam Draxl, who exited in straight sets against Damir Džumhur (7–5, 6–0, 6–4).

Finally, qualifier Marina Stakusic was forced to retire from her tightly contested match against New Zealand’s Priscilla Hon. Despite holding a one-set lead, Stakusic was eliminated after the match ended 6–1, 4–6, 3–5, ret.