Toronto tennis star Victoria Mboko will play the biggest match yet of her young career tonight as she faces off against four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka in the final of the National Bank Open in Montreal.
According to the Canadian Olympic Committee, the WTA 1000 event is considered Canada’s most prestigious tennis tournament, and 18-year-old Mboko is making history as the youngest Canadian woman ever to reach the tournament final in the Open Era.
The Toronto-raised teenager, born in Charlotte, North Carolina, to Congolese parents, is also only the third wild card entry ever to reach the final of the Canadian Open. She ranked No. 85 when she entered the tournament but stunned the tennis world with a series of upsets, defeating three former Grand Slam winners throughout the series — 2020 Australian Open champ Sofia Kenin in the second round, two-time Grand Slam champion Coco Gauff in the fourth round, and, most recently, 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in Wednesday’s semifinal. In that match, she saved a match point and played through a wrist injury to defeat Rybakina in a 1-6, 7-5, 7-6(4) battle that lasted nearly three hours.
“It’s been a crazy night for me,” Mboko said after yesterday’s win. “For my first-ever final of a 1000, it’s unbelievable to even think about it, and I’m just really happy to be here and just to celebrate it with all the Canadian fans that came to watch.”
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The teen’s run has catapulted her up the rankings. Mboko is now guaranteed a spot inside the WTA top 40, having started 2025 outside the top 300.
And perhaps her success isn’t all that surprising. The teenager, who was raised in Burlington, ON, actually hails from a family of tennis players. She’s the youngest of four Mboko siblings, two boys and two girls, all of whom have played tennis.
According to a recent WTA profile, Mboko’s sister, Gracia, and brother, Kevin, both competed at the college level. Her other brother, David, had to stop playing due to eye problems.
“I just remember watching them from the sidelines and not wanting to be left out,” Mboko told the WTA earlier this month.
“I’ve actually never beaten any of them,” she said. “I never like to lose a lot. I played my sister once in a tournament and I lost 0 and 0. I was absolutely devastated. They still hold that over me to this day!”
Tonight, Mboko will play Osaka: the former world No. 1 and four-time Slam winner defeated Clara Tauson in straight sets to reach her first WTA 1000 final since 2022 (she’s apparently also one of Mboko’s tennis idols!)
This is a big night for Osaka herself, who took a long hiatus from the tour for maternity leave and mental health recovery. But she’s praised Mboko’s maturity and calmness on court.
“I thought it was really impressive how she stayed calm,” Osaka told reporters about the rising star. “That’s really impressive for an 18-year-old.”
The final starts this evening at 6:00 p.m. ET. You can watch it on Sportsnet or catch highlights online.
