Canadian tennis player Leylah Annie Fernandez will be facing a big challenge in the first round of the women’s singles competition at the Paris Olympic Games when she takes on Czech player Karolina Muchova.
The 16th-seeded Fernandez learned at Thursday’s draw that she’d be taking on the 2023 French Open finalist when competition gets underway at Roland-Garros stadium.
Muchova, who is ranked 29th in the world, won the only previous match the two have played, on the hard court in Miami in 2022.
Bianca Andreescu, Canada’s other female singles entry, will play 63rd-ranked Clara Tauson of Denmark in the first round.
On the men’s side, 13th-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime will hope to surpass his first-round defeat at the Tokyo Games when he confronts 38th ranked American Marcos Giron in Paris.
Milos Raonic, in his first Olympics since London 2012, will face Germany’s Dominik Koepfer.
Auger-Aliassime reached the quarterfinals last week in Gstaad, Switzerland. He also played well on clay this spring, reaching the final at the Madrid Masters and the round of 16 at the French Open.
WATCH | Ons Jabeur eliminates Fernandez in French Open 3rd round:
Ons Jabeur of Tunisia defeated Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que., 6-4, 7-6(5) in the third round at Roland-Garros.
Auger-Aliassime, Raonic doubles partners
The 24-year-old from Quebec has won three of the four previous matches he’s played against Giron.
Auger-Aliassime will also team with Raonic in doubles and Ottawa’s Gabriela Dabrowski in mixed doubles.
The fifth-seeded pair of Fernandez and Dabrowski will face France’s Clara Burel and Varvara Gracheva in the first round of the women’s doubles tournament.
Canada has only won one Olympic tennis medal, which was a gold by Sebastien Lareau and Daniel Nestor at the Sydney Games in 2000.
In other play, top-seeded Novak Djokovic could meet his longtime rival Rafael Nadal in the second round of the Paris Olympic tennis tournament.
Djokovic was drawn Thursday against Australian Matthew Ebden and Nadal faces Hungarian Marton Fucsovics, with the winners of those matches meeting in Round 2.
Andy Murray to play doubles only
Two-time Olympic gold medallist Andy Murray pulled out of singles at the Paris Games and only will compete in doubles with Dan Evans.
Murray, a 37-year-old from Britain, has said these Olympics will be the final event of his career.
He’s dealt with a series of injuries, including a hip replacement in 2019, and most recently needed surgery last month to remove a cyst from his spine.
Murray pulled out of singles at Wimbledon this month and played one match in doubles alongside his older brother, Jamie.
“I’ve taken the decision to withdraw from the singles to concentrate on the doubles with Dan. Our practice has been great and we’re playing well together,” Murray said Thursday. “Really looking forward to getting started and representing GB one more time.”
His withdrawal announcement came shortly before the draw for the Olympics tennis tournament. Play begins Saturday on clay courts at Roland Garros, home to the French Open.
“The Olympics has been incredibly special to me. I’m really happy I get to do this one more time,” Murray said on stage shortly after Thursday’s draw. “I’m getting a bit older now so it gets harder to recover from injuries. I just ran out of time really [to play singles], but happy to be in the doubles with Dan and we play well together.”
They will face Japan’s Taro Daniel and Kei Nishikori in the first round on the clay courts at Roland Garros.
3-time major winner Kerber retiring
Three-time Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber announced she will retire after the Paris Olympics.
The 36-year-old German player won majors at every tournament except for the French Open at Roland Garros — on the same clay courts where she will bid farewell to tennis after the Paris Games. She faces four-time major winner Naomi Osaka of Japan in the first round.
“Before the Olympics begin, l can already say that I will never forget Paris 2024, because it will be my last professional tournament as a tennis player,” Kerber posted on Instagram. “And whereas this might actually be the right decision, it will never feel that way. Simply because I love the sport with all my heart and l’m thankful for the memories and opportunities it has given me.”
Kerber later confirmed her retirement when speaking briefly on stage after the Olympic draw.
Kerber won the Australian Open and the U.S. Open in 2016 — the year she reached No. 1 in the rankings — and won Wimbledon two years later.
“Paris 2024 will mark the finish line of the most incredible journey I could have ever dreamed of growing up with a racket in my hand,” Kerber added. “There are many more things I want to say and people to thank, which I will do once I completed my last match. But for now, I will take the time and soak up every second of this final episode on court.”
