A 500-place gap, closed in Montreal
Duncan Chan is ranked 601st in the world. Hugo Gaston, the No. 5 seed in qualifying, sits at 90th. On Saturday in Montreal the numbers meant nothing. The 21-year-old Canadian wild card beat the Frenchman 2-6, 7-5, 6-3 to reach the main draw of the National Bank Open for the first time.
Chan, from Markham, Ontario, lost the opening set and looked overmatched. He steadied, found his range on the big points, and turned the match around over two hours and five minutes. Eight double faults and four breaks of serve told of the nerves. Five conversions from 13 break points told of the belief.
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Into his first ATP Tour main draw
The win sends Chan into his first career ATP Tour main-draw match, where he meets Argentina’s Thiago Agustin Tirante. For a player who arrived on a wild card, ranked outside the top 600, it is a giant leap on home soil.
He was one of 16 qualifiers to complete the 96-player field. The group carried weight. 2024 NBO champion Alexei Popyrin came through, as did Stefanos Tsitsipas, a 13-time tour winner who claimed the Gstaad title two weeks ago.
Home hopes in Montreal
Canadian tennis has grown used to moments like this, and Chan’s breakthrough adds another name to the local story ahead of a fortnight at IGA Stadium. The seeds arrive next. Chan has already shown he did not travel to make up the numbers.
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