The Road to the U.S. Open Runs Through Canada and Cincinnati

2026 Miami Open men’s singles champion Jannik Sinner dominates on the grass and hard courts.

Ethan Silipo, Contributor

The Next Chapter After Wimbledon

On Sunday, July 12, Miami Open champion Jannik Sinner rifled a forehand down the line, clipping grass on its way past Alexander Zverev in the fourth set. Moments later, he crumbled to the ground in celebration of his second consecutive Wimbledon title. While the tennis world applauded, the grass-court season quietly came to an end.

Despite being the shortest stretch of the tennis circuit, the grass consistently conjures some of the sport’s most memorable stories, and this year was no exception. Joining Sinner on Wimbledon’s storied winner’s wall was Linda Nosková, who won her first career Grand Slam in the first-ever all-Czechia major final against Karolína Muchová. The grass even saw Arthur Fery, a British qualifier from the town of Wimbledon itself, reach the semifinals and capture the hearts of the All England Club.

But the tennis calendar waits for no one. The rolling green lawns have already been replaced by the ultimate stabilizer: hard court.

The North American Hard-Court Swing Begins

As the longest and most grueling stretch of the tennis calendar, the hard-court season lives up to its name. The surface is unforgiving on the body, punishing on the joints, and notorious for turning stadiums into ovens on hot summer days. Faster than clay but slower than grass, it requires a complete package: speed, power, footwork, precision, nerves, stamina, versatility, and the list goes on.

The tour hasn’t been on a hard court since March. In fact, the last major hard-court event was the Miami Open presented by Itaú, which served as a classic display of high-quality tennis and a quick preview of the portion of the season we now enter. The tour returns to North America for a hard-court swing that leads all the way up to the commencement of the US Open, the year’s final Grand Slam event.

Canadian Open Sets the Stage for the US Open

The first Masters 1000 stop on the North American swing is the Canadian Open, which kicks off in early August with the ATP in Montreal and the WTA in Toronto. Those events are followed by another Masters 1000, the Cincinnati Open, before the US Open in September.

With several key players absent from the Canadian Open last year, the tournament turned into a showcase of the next generation. Twenty-two-year-old Ben Shelton defeated Karen Khachanov to claim the men’s title, while 17-year-old Victoria Mboko cemented herself as one of tennis’s most exciting prospects when she beat Naomi Osaka to capture the women’s crown. Osaka, meanwhile, used her Canadian Open finals finish as a springboard for a US Open semifinal run.

Cincinnati Open: The Ultimate US Open Warm-Up

The Cincinnati Open is often considered a key preview for the US Open, and for good reason. The last three men’s champions in Cincinnati went on to lift the trophy in New York that same year: Carlos Alcaraz in 2025, Sinner in 2024, and Novak Djokovic in 2023. The trend remains true on the women’s side with Aryna Sabalenka accomplishing the feat in 2024 and Coco Gauff in 2023, while 2025 champion Iga Swiatek made it to the quarterfinals of the American Slam.

For fans of the Miami Open presented by Itaú, Cincinnati offers familiar conditions. Both tournaments are Masters 1000 events directly following another major hard-court stop on the calendar, and both see scorching temperatures. The same stars thrive at both events as well, with recent years seeing players like Sinner and Sabalenka dominating headlines.

Of course, they are far from the only contenders. Miami Open champions Jakub Mensik, Daniil Medvedev, and Hubert Hurkacz have all shown they can excel on North American hard courts, making them dangerous contenders in Cincinnati. Djokovic and Alcaraz are perennial threats, but both have hurdles to clear. At 39, Djokovic has been citing general wear and tear on his body after more than 20 years on tour. For Alcaraz, it’s a matter of health after injuring his wrist in April. He confirmed his return for the Cincinnati Open, but questions remain. Will he pick up where he left off, or will he be vulnerable to a shock loss like the one he suffered to Sebastian Korda in the third round of this year’s Miami Open?

The women’s side sees no shortage of challengers with the pedigree to make a deep run in Cincinnati. Defending champion Swiatek faces a loaded field including Sabalenka, Gauff, Elena Rybakina and a resurgent Osaka. Every single one of those names has hoisted a hard-court Grand Slam, making Cincinnati perhaps the clearest preview of the battle to come in New York.

It may not be Hard Rock Stadium, but hard-court season is back and the road to the US Open has begun.