![\"Victoria](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/e65844195c55b680a0799f0ebdf649a0de42f123d84b893f4e32db339584cd31.jpeg\")
<\/p>\nCanada play their first-round match against China on Sunday night, when Mboko and Felix Auger-Aliassime take on Lin Zhu and Zhizhen Zhang.<\/p>\n
Mboko\u2019s breakout tournament came at the Masters 1000 event in Montreal last July.<\/p>\n
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Victoria Mboko after defeating Naomi Osaka to win the Masters 1000 event in Montreal last year.Credit: Getty Images<\/p>\n
The then-18-year-old was given a wildcard entry, then defeated grand slam winners Sofia Kenin, Gauff, Rybakina and Naomi Osaka to lift the trophy.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was amazing,\u201d Mboko said. \u201cHonestly, those two weeks were such a blur for me, but it was honestly just incredible to see how many people were able to support me and just be so behind me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve never had that many people cheer for me. Overall, it\u2019s an experience that I can look back on and be happy that it happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
After a year that exceeded all her expectations, Mboko\u2019s goals for 2026 are slightly more lofty than the ones she set herself 12 months ago.<\/p>\n
But with tennis comes highs and lows, and the teenager is wary of placing too much pressure on herself.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you enter a tournament, you want to win it, so it would be nice for Canada to win the United Cup,\u201d Mboko said.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThis year, I don\u2019t really want to put that much expectation on myself either because I\u2019m not one to set huge goals.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt would be nice to just be pretty consistent, stay healthy, have fun on the court … it would be nice to maybe go far in a grand slam, but other than that I just want to take it week by week.\u201d<\/p>\n
Watch the 2026 United Cup from January 2 on Nine, 9Now<\/a> and Stan Sports<\/a>.<\/p>\n