Canadian teenage sensation Victoria Mboko clinched a stunning comeback win over ninth seed Elena Rybakina to reach the final of the National Bank Open in Montreal, where she will face four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka.
The 18-year-old Mboko rallied from a set down, in which she was dominated 6-1, to not only take Rybakina into a decider, but then save a match point and break the 2022 Wimbledon champion twice to force a final tie-breaker.
Mboko, who upset top seed Coco Gauff 6-1 6-4 earlier in the tournament and also beat Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in straight sets in their quarter-final clash, ultimately prevailed 1-6 7-5 7-6 (7-4) to book her spot in the final.
“Incredible match, thank you to everyone for supporting me,” Mboko told the crowd in French. “It was really difficult, but anything can happen.
“Playing in front of the home crowd, obviously, has its advantages. You always have everyone pumping you up as much as they can. It really pulls me through in the tough moments where I’m maybe not as positive. Really blessed to have that kind of support.”
Mboko overcame 11 double-faults and battled through a wrist injury after stumbling awkwardly to the ground in the second game of the third set.
Mboko, who will move up to at least 34th in the world after starting the year outside the top 300, said afterwards that her wrist felt “a lot better”.
“She was playing really great tennis on top of that, but I’m happy that I kept my composure,” Mboko said of her stumble. “I was patient in the right moments. I just feel really happy that I was able to bounce back after being down, even a match point, I think.”
Ranked 85th in the world, Mboko is seeking her first WTA Tour title and trying to join Faye Urban (1969) and Bianca Andreescu (2019) as the only Canadians to win their home event in the open era.
In the final on Thursday night, she will face former world No 1 Osaka, who overcame 16th seed Clara Tauson 6-2 7-6 (9-7) in the other semi-final.
Osaka continued her best performance in a WTA 1000 tournament since reaching the Miami final in 2022. She stepped away from the game for 15 months towards the end of that season and had daughter Shai in July 2023.
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