The business end of the WTA and ATP Canadian Open is fast approaching.
The finals in Montreal and Toronto will take place on Thursday and Friday respectively, rather than over the weekend.
In an event in which many of the top male players withdrew, the crowds have been treated to some exciting matches.
It remains to be seen who will take the crown, but former ATP players Jack Sock and John Isner have shared their predictions.
Photo by Mert Alper Dervis/Anadolu via Getty ImagesJack Sock thinks Alex de Minaur will win the Canadian Open but John Isner is backing Ben Shelton
The likes of Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic withdrew from the Canadian Open.
British number one Jack Draper is also absent in Canada and these players not being at the tournament has given others a greater chance of success.
Alex de Minaur has yet to win a Masters 1000 title. However, De Minaur won the Citi Open just before arriving in Canada and he is on an eight-match win streak.
Jack Sock thinks he will continue this momentum and claim the title in Toronto. “I actually think De Minaur is going to win the tournament,” he told the Nothing Major podcast.
“I think he is going to win back to back titles. Hot take!” On the other hand, his co-host John Isner, thinks their compatriot Ben Shelton will lift the title.
“No, I think Ben [Shelton] is going to get Alex so I disagree with you on that,” the former world number eight said.
“Ben’s trajectory is just so good right now, how he is steadily improving. I think he is setting himself up eventually for something really, really big. I’m so impressed with Ben.”
Photo by Mert Alper Dervis/Anadolu via Getty ImagesAlex de Minaur and Ben Shelton will play each other in the Canadian Open quarterfinals
Either one of Sock or Isner’s predictions will be proved wrong as they are set to face one another at the Canadian Open.
Both Shelton and De Minaur will compete for a spot in the semi-finals at the Masters 1000 event in Toronto.
Shelton has won successive three-set battles to reach the last eight, both of which he won in a final set tiebreak.
De Minaur has played just two matches after receiving a walkover in round three, and he needed three sets to win his last match against Frances Tiafoe.
Toronto will mark Shelton and De Minaur’s first ATP meeting and it is set to be an exciting battle between two of the tour’s most dynamic players.