Unlike the National Bank Open last week where we saw familiar names like Halep and Carreno Busta lift the titles, Cincinnati provided something totally different for tennis fans. Two talented but unlikely champions were crowned in Cincinnati.

Caroline Garcia lifted the title along with her ranking. Garcia now sits at world number 17. She is now one of the hottest players on tour, winning three titles in three months. Her game is coming together at just the right time. The US Open is around the corner and she’ll be looking to take her dangerous game to New York. Nobody will want to face her with her current form.

The other unlikely champion was Borna Coric. Four years ago, Coric would not have been much of a surprise champion. He was still considered a top player and was routinely winning big matches. Then the pandemic hit and subsequently a shoulder surgery sidelined him for all of 2021 and part of 2022. He’s now back, and back with a vengeance he is. He took out Nadal, Auger-Aliassime, Norrie, and Tsitsipas. All top ten players. This is no easy feat. Coric will now take his monumental confidence to the US Open. He will be seeded now that he’s 29 in the world.

Here are some more observations for the week!

It was nice to see Tsitsipas finally win a match on a hard court against Medvedev. Tsitsipas looked great in his win and should feel confident in his chances at the US Open.

The Kyrgios train ran out of steam in the second round of the tournament. Kyrgios could not find either the energy or serve to put up a fight against Fritz. He’ll still be considered among the favorites to win the tournament.

Kvitova finally broke through to her 40th career final. Her game has started clicking again. She looked like the Kvitova of old, overpowering the field with a strong serve and hitting flat winners from all over the baseline. Let’s hope she keeps this form going into the US Open. Tennis needs her!

Serena’s preparation for her last US Open hit another roadblock in Cincinnati. Emma Raducanu played brilliantly to dispatch the great champion. With the limited match play leading to the US Open one has to wonder how far she can really go.

Most of the field is now in New York waiting anxiously for the draw to be unveiled on Thursday. In the meantime, you can feed your excitement by checking out Tennis Warehouse’s New York Collection. Feel inspired!

Like always, don’t forget to jump on to the TennisPAL app to stay up to date on tennis news, find groups of friends to play with, and get a virtual coach to help with your tennis game.