“Anything can happen” – Victoria Mboko makes confident claim ahead of blockbuster clash with Naomi Osaka in Canadian Open final

August 7, 2025

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Canadian rising star Victoria Mboko exuded confidence ahead of her matchup against Naomi Osaka in the Canadian Open finals. Mboko edged past Kazakh player Elena Rybakina in the semifinals to advance to her first-ever WTA-level final.

Victoria Mboko, the teenage sensation from Canada, made her WTA Tour main draw debut in 2022 at the same Canadian Open that is underway. She was partnered with Kayla Cross in the doubles but couldn’t take her campaign further. Cut to 2025, the 18-year-old made it to the finals after defeating formidable rivals like Coco Gauff and Rybakina.

Coming off a demanding victory 1-6, 7-5, 7-6(4), Mboko exuded confidence and said that she has the potential to claim the title over former No. 1 Naomi Osaka. She also expressed gratitude to the crowd for their support as she battled through a wrist injury and also stumbled to the ground in the second game of the third set.

"Anything can happen, you know. It was a very difficult match against Elena. She's such a good player. I'm so tired right now. I mean, unfortunately I fell. But I had everyone supporting me and pushing me through. But without you guys, I don't think I would have been able to pull this through."

In the title match, she will face the Japanese player, who posted a 6-2, 7-6 (7) win over Danish player Clara Tauson.

Victoria Mboko revealed her source of inspiration as she takes Canadian tennis forward

Mboko at the WTA 1000 National Bank Open presented by Rogers - Day 11 - (Source: Getty)

Victoria Mboko had a breakthrough at the Canadian Open, reaching No. 85 in the WTA ranking on July 28, 2025. If she wins the WTA title in Montreal, she will join the likes of Faye Urban and Bianca Andreescu to win the home event in the Open era.

However, another player of her nation, Eugenie Bouchard, who boasted a stellar career, retired from the home event after her 2R loss against Belinda Bencic. After Mboko's advancement to the semifinals, she shed light on how integral Bouchard's contributions have been in Canadian tennis and that she has been a beacon of inspiration.

"Well, I haven't really watched Genie play a lot, but you know, I feel like she was kind of the first Canadian woman to kind of set a lot of milestones for Canadian tennis. So I think she's just been an inspiration for a lot of young girls like me. Yeah, I mean, I feel like our game styles could be also pretty different. That's all I can really say." (via press conference)

Victoria Mboko reached two Grand Slam junior finals in 2022, the Australian Open and Wimbledon.

About the author

Agnijeeta is a US Olympics journalist at Sportskeeda. She holds a Master’s degree in English and has worked as a school teacher, a blogger, a content writer and a sports writer over the past 5 years. A lover of high-adrenaline track and field events, she was also a sprinter during her school days.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone happens to be her favorite Olympian, and the athlete’s feat of breaking four records within 13 months inspires her, apart from the American's body language on and off the track. Grant Hackett swimming with a partially dysfunctional lung and winning gold in Athens is her all-time favorite Olympic moment.

Agnijeeta believes that deriving of unique angles from podcasts and interviews carried out by Olympics.com, along with hype-building of potential Olympic events on social media can help fill the coverage gap during the off season.

When not at her work desk, Agnijeeta likes to sing and paint. She also plays string instruments like guitar and ukulele and is an avid player of word puzzles.

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