Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev were among the biggest upsets in the second round of the 2026 Canadian Open. The two former champions were projected to meet in a potential semifinal clash, but their campaigns came to an abrupt end as they were stunned by Dutch opponents in their opening matches.
In their respective post-match press conferences, Zverev and Medvedev reflected on their unexpected defeats.
Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev Crash Out of the 2026 Canadian Open
The ongoing Masters 1000 tournament in Montréal has continued to produce surprising results, with several big names, including Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic, and Carlos Alcaraz, absent from the event. The tournament has already lost its top two seeds, Zverev and Felix Auger-Aliassime. While Auger-Aliassime withdrew at the last minute due to a back injury, the German was knocked out by Tallon Griekspoor, who battled back to claim a 6-7(3), 6-2, 6-4 victory.
“I didn’t expect to play well. I also didn’t expect to play this bad, to be honest. I think this was probably the worst match of the season that I’ve had this year. I didn’t have many bad matches, but this one was up there as the worst. But that’s okay. It’s a process,” Zverev said about his first hardcourt match after the Wimbledon final.
He also issued a warning about the possibility of more upsets, pointing fingers at the seemingly “uncontrollable” Wilson balls. The French Open champion added, “I don’t want to find excuses. It’s not a problem. I think it’s just something that everybody has to get used to, and Canada is just the first tournament that we play with them. So it just takes time to get used to.”
Meanwhile, fourth seed Medvedev was beaten by another Dutchman, Botic van de Zandschulp, 6-3, 7-6(5). The Russian, who was playing his first match back since his Wimbledon third-round defeat, said he felt good during his pre-tournament practices.
Speaking about the string of upsets in Montréal during his press conference, the former World No. 1 said, “I have no idea about other guys. I just played a very not good match, and I lost. So that’s all I can say about me. About others, I have no idea.”
When asked whether the condition of the balls played a role, Medvedev said, “Maybe, but that’s not an excuse. I mean, just if I want to win matches, I need to play better than what I did today. So it’s really disappointing, but again, the match is over, so nothing I can do right now.”
The Canadian Open presented a golden opportunity for the top seeds to make their mark after Sinner swept the first five Masters 1000 titles of the season. However, Zverev, a seven-time Masters 1000 champion, insisted that he did not view the defeat as a missed opportunity.
Meanwhile, several other seeded players suffered opening-match exits after receiving first-round byes, including Andrey Rublev, Flavio Cobolli, Taylor Fritz, 2025 finalist Karen Khachanov, and Francisco Cerúndolo, among others.
