Canadian rising stars Emma Si Yu Dong of Vancouver and Avery Alexander of Sudbury, Ontario, are among the players who advanced to the second round of WTA singles qualifying on day one of the Odlum Brown VanOpen as the tournament returned to Hollyburn Country Club for the first time since 2022.

Dong navigated a 4-1 third-set deficit and intermittent rain interruptions during qualifying singles action to capture her first career WTA victory with a 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 upset over fourth-seeded Ena Shibahara. “I was obviously expecting a few delays here and there knowing it’s Vancouver, but it was definitely tough,” Dong, 19, said of the weather, which paused the schedule multiple times during the match. “I started off strong in the first set and then with a few rain delays, I lost my rhythm a bit.”

The comeback knocks out the 28-year-old Shibahara, a Japanese veteran who won the 2022 French Open mixed doubles title. “In the third set, I think I just had a strong mentality and just kept fighting and got the win,” Dong added. “This is my first WTA win, so it gives me a lot of confidence, and it tells me that I’m able to play at this level and I’m ready for the next round.”

For Alexander, she grinded out a 6-4, 4-6, 7-6(5) victory over fifth-seeded Martina Okalova of Slovakia. For the 16-year-old Alexander, the pro-Canadian crowd helped drive her to the upset. “It means so much. This is my first WTA level event and it’s super special playing it in Canada, in Vancouver. I love this place,” she explained. “(There were) a few rain delays in the start of the match, but honestly it worked out well, (it was a) great match.”

The win is Alexander’s biggest victory of your young career. “It means so much to me, like everyone cheering for me, it really gives you that extra sense of confidence and it really motivates you to just want to play each and every point better and just win the match and it’s super helpful. My main strategy in the game is just going for my shots, playing my game, and really going for the ball.”

Third-seeded Sijia Wei of China defeated Canada’s Havana Kadi 6-0, 6-1 in a one-sided affair. The 22-year-old Wei has a career-high WTA singles ranking of No. 114, which she reached in March 2025.

In a hard-fought battle that required an intense comeback, 24-year-old American Ellie Schoppe outlasted sixth-seeded 22-year-old Canadian Ana Grubor 6-7(5), 7-5, 6-2. Eighth-seed Hong Yi Cody Wong of Hong Kong topped Toronto’s Dasha Plekhanova 6-2, 7-6(1) to move into the second round of qualifying. The final Canadian in action on Sunday was 22-year-old Edmontonian Mia Kupres, who dropped a 6-4, 6-0 match to seventh-seed Valeria Savinykh.

Meanwhile, top-seeded Katrina Scott cruised past Mexico’s Sabastiani Leon with a commanding 6-1, 6-1 victory. The 22-year-old American, who has US Open main draw experience, showcased why she is a contender for making it into the main draw at Hollyburn Country Club. The last match of the day ended with second-seed Miho Kuramochi of Japan toppling compatriot Hiroko Kuwata 7-6(2), 6-4.

Matches at the Odlum Brown VanOpen continue Sunday, July 26 at 10 a.m., featuring men’s and women’s qualifying and first-round women’s main draw singles.

Official ATP and WTA draws and results are available at http://www.vanopen.com.

Photo credit: Mark Steffens