One of the most interesting matchups of the first round in the men’s draw of the Rogers Cup is Kyle Edmund vs. Diego Schwartzman.
Kyle Edmund career year in review
ATP will hold the tournament in Toronto this year, while the women will play in Montreal as part of the agreement to alternate the two cities each year. Kyle Edmund will try to improve on last year’s performance in Montreal, where he lost in the first round to David Ferrer after winning the first set. 2018 has been an amazing year for the 23-year-old South African-born Brit, who reached his first Grand Slam semifinal, became Great Britain’s No.1, entered the top 20 in the ATP list, reached his first ATP singles final and won his first doubles title.
Opening the year ranked No. 50, Kyle Edmund caught everyone’s attention by reaching the semi-final of the Australian Open, eliminating one of the best players on tour and Wimbledon finalist Kevin Anderson in five sets (in the first round). He defeated Grigor Dimitrov in the quarter-final before losing to Marin Cilic. In March, he overcame the injured Andy Murray to become Britain’s new No.1 and then lost in the final in Marrakesh to Pablo Andujar in his first career ATP Tour final. In May, he and compatriot Cameron Norrie won the doubles trophy in Estoril without losing a set.
Kyle Edmund’s last two losses on tour were against Novak Djokovic (Wimbledon) and Andy Murray (Washington Open), two players he already defeated in 2018. He is currently ranked No.16, but enters the Rogers Cup in Toronto unseeded, unlike his opponent Diego Schwartzman.
Diego Schwartzman is glad to be back on a hard court
Schwartzman had a meteoric rise last season, fascinating fans from around the globe with his exhilarating style of play and long, excruciating encounters. Even though he’s still ranked No.12, the Argentinian has struggled to find his form in recent months. He lost in the quarter-final of the French Open to Rafael Nadal, after which he opened the grass court season with a first-round loss to Slovakian Lukas Lacko in Eastbourne. The 25-year-old followed that up with a second-round straight-sets Wimbledon loss to Czech Republic’s Jan Vesely. Two more defeats against Simone Bolelli in Bastad (first round) and fellow countryman Leonardo Mayer in Hamburg (third round) have dropped Schwartzman’s confidence to a year low, a year in which he won his second singles title in Buenos Aires.
The change of scenery should serve him well, as Diego Schwartzman hasn’t put his feet on a hard court since March. He enters this tournament as the 11th seed, but due to his poor run of form, the Argentinian is not the favourite versus Kyle Edmund.
Diego Schwartzman vs Kyle Edmund Head-to-Head
The two have met once before in a tournament in Irvine, Texas back in 2015. Edmund won that match in three sets. Regardless of how it turns out at the end, this should be a fun match to watch for the fans in Toronto. The two are in the top part of the draw, where potential matchups against Sam Querrey, Marin Cilic and Rafael Nadal await in the next three rounds for whoever progresses today.
