Victoria Mboko is one win away from a WTA title on home soil.
The 18-year-old Canadian continued her remarkable run at the National Bank Open presented by Rogers with a 1-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7-4) win over Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina in the semifinals Wednesday in Montreal.
After falling quickly in the opening set, Mboko showed tremendous resilience to win the next two and oust the No. 9-seeded Rybakina.
The Canadian also had to fight through an awkward fall in the third set that appeared to injure her wrist. Up 2-1 in the final set, Mboko had to take a medical timeout to get her wrist taped, but fought through to win the match.
After starting the year ranked outside the top 300, Mboko is already guaranteed to move into the top 50 after the event. She could move into the top 25 if she wins the tournament, which seemed unthinkable until just a few days ago.
The Canadian’s final test of the tournament will come against the winner of Wednesday’s second semifinal between Naomi Osaka and Clara Tauson.
Mboko will enter the National Bank Open final looking to become the first Canadian to win the event since Bianca Andreescu won it all in 2019.
More to come.
