Even champion Jessica Pegula wishes the National Bank Open women's singles final could have been played under different circumstances.
The fourth-seeded Pegula put on a dominant display Sunday evening, defeating a tired Liudmila Samsonova of Russia 6-1, 6-0 in a 49-minute final that never looked close to capture her first NBO title.
"She's had a crazy schedule," said Pegula of Samsonova. "She's played a lot of matches in a short amount of time and it's not ideal. There's nothing we could really do, it was just the weather, but I know scheduling wasn't in her favour.
"It sucks when you feel like you're not on a really fair playing ground."
The 15th-seeded Samsonova, who had already played two matches on Friday due to a week riddled with poor weather in Montreal, defeated Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan 1-6, 6-1, 6-2 earlier Sunday to advance to the final of the WTA 1000 singles event.
The semifinal was originally scheduled for Saturday evening but had to be pushed to Sunday because of rainy weather.
Despite the weather, which affected nearly every day of the tournament, Samsonova believes tournament organizers could have done more to avoid having her play twice on the same day multiple times.
"Everyone saw that on the forecast that at 6 p.m. (Saturday) it would be raining, so I knew that. But, of course, it's strange that the people don't care so much about us," she said. "Because if you know that you must, I think -- this is my opinion -- make a schedule where it's possible to play because we already made two matches in one day.
"So you have to try to do the best to not play two matches on another day. This is my opinion."
Samsonova only had two hours and 15 minutes to recover between matches. In that amount of time, she says she couldn't.
As a result, the 24-year-old battled, saying she tried to get something going until she was down 0-3 in the second set, but made error after error, including six double faults.
"Honestly, I would love to have (had) more time (between matches)," said Samsonova. "But they said that it's not possible, so it's OK.
"I didn't have time to regenerate because I was in the physio room trying to tape all my body, and it takes one hour for this," she added. "So I don't know what to say. I was out of the court and then (back) in, and I don't know. It was strange."
Pegula, meanwhile, was well-rested after beating world No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the first semifinal Saturday afternoon before the weather took a turn for the worse -- and it showed.
As much as Samsonova looked fatigued, Pegula also played flawlessly, winning 100 per cent of her first service points and going five-for-eight on break points.
A day after breaking Iga Swiatek 11 times, Pegula was up to much of the same, hitting multiple return winners with her forehand to break Samsonova twice en route to taking the first set in 20 minutes.
The American even cranked that up a notch in the second set, converting three break points without dropping a single game. In total, Pegula won 51 points to Samsonova's 21.
"I know physically she obviously wasn't feeling her best but at the same time I played a really clean match," said Pegula. "I don't think I made any unforced errors or anything. I played kind of a perfect match."
And though the final was a breeze, Pegula's road to the title certainly wasn't.
The 29-year-old took down sixth seed and doubles teammates Coco Gauff in the quarterfinals before defeating Swiatek in the semis -- both in three sets -- to reach the final.
It's Pegula's first WTA title this year and the third of her career. The product of Buffalo, N.Y., last won a tournament at the Guadalajara Open in October last year.
Jessica Pegula of the United States, hits a return to Liudmila Samsonova of Russia, in the final of the National Bank Open tennis tournament in Montreal, Sunday, Aug.13, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi
The title also marks another successful trip to Canada for Pegula, whose grandmother is from Montreal.
Pegula played her first WTA singles final at the National Bank Cup in Quebec City in 2018. She also made the NBO semifinals in 2021 and 2022 before finally breaking through this year.
"I'm not really sure what it is. I think it's a little bit of mindset. I've always kind of played well here, so I always come in with a good attitude and good spirits that I can always play good tennis here," she said.
"I like feeling like I'm up in the Northeast kind of area, maybe because that's where I'm comfortable. I guess it's sometimes you feel comfortable where you like to play, and that can definitely play into your results. So I think it's just always played into my results here. Yeah, I don't know what it is, but I'll take it."
In doubles play Sunday, No. 7 seeds Shuko Aoyama and Ena Shibahara of Japan, who also played two matches on the day, defeated No. 5 seeds Demi Schuurs of the Netherlands and American Desirae Krawczyk 6-4, 4-6, 13-11 in the final.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 13, 2023.
Members of Parliament debated the second Conservative motion of non-confidence in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government of the week on Thursday, amid simmering tensions.
Helene strengthened into a Category 4 hurricane ahead of its expected landfall on Florida's northwest coast Thursday night, forecasters said, warning that the enormous storm could create a 'nightmare' surge in coastal areas and bring dangerous winds and rain across much of the southeastern U.S.
Mounties in Nunavut have made an arrest in the murder of a 15-year-old girl almost 40 years ago.
Scammers are increasingly using emails to extort money from victims by threatening to reveal compromising photos, videos and personal information to their friends and family members, according to a new warning from Mounties in Metro Vancouver.
An Air Canada flight headed to Toronto from Frankfurt diverted to Edinburgh due to an emergency Thursday, the airline says.
Canadian singer K’naan has been charged with sexual assault after being arrested by police in Quebec City.
An NDP MP has introduced a bill that would criminalize residential school denialism, saying it would help stop harm caused toward survivors, their families and communities.
A partial masking mandate has returned to Nova Scotia hospitals and provincially run healthcare facilities for visitors and healthcare workers.
A Canadian pharmaceutical company is warning consumers not to use some of its eye drops because of potential microbial growth that may result in eye infections.
Mounties in Nunavut have made an arrest in the murder of a 15-year-old girl almost 40 years ago.
A psychiatric report has found a man accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting six women east of Calgary is fit to stand trial but his lawyer wants the court to order another hearing before the long-delayed matter resumes.
Vancouver police blocked traffic and the SkyTrain's Millennium Line suspended service to VCC-Clark Station due to an "unstable crane" in the area Thursday.
Scammers are increasingly using emails to extort money from victims by threatening to reveal compromising photos, videos and personal information to their friends and family members, according to a new warning from Mounties in Metro Vancouver.
A lawyer defending a 14-year-old accused of setting a classmate on fire says 'voices told her to do things' prior to a fiery attack which severely injured a classmate and a teacher at Evan Hardy Collegiate earlier this month.
The driver of a semi was injured and 22 cattle died following a rollover on Highway 39 near Midale, Sask. on Sept. 21.
He's sold Bibles, sneakers, photo books and cryptocurrency during his third campaign for U.S. president. Now, Donald Trump is launching a new business venture: diamond-encrusted watches.
A Montana man has been arrested after witnesses said he intentionally and repeatedly swerved his car at three motorcycles in south-central Montana, running one off the road and killing its driver, officials in Carbon County said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday vowed to carry out 'full force' strikes against Hezbollah until it ceases firing rockets across the border, dimming hopes for a ceasefire proposal put forth by U.S. and European officials.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams was charged by the U.S. Department of Justice in a five-count criminal indictment unsealed on Thursday, becoming the city's first sitting mayor to face criminal charges. Here are some accusations in the indictment, which have not been proven in court.
Changes in Russia's nuclear doctrine that were announced by President Vladimir Putin are intended to discourage Ukraine's Western allies from supporting attacks on Russia, the Kremlin said Thursday.
In her first interview in more than two years, former U.S. first lady Melania Trump said she saw her husband's survival in two attempts on his life as 'miracles' and offered new details about the former president, including his desire to have more children.
Members of Parliament debated the second Conservative motion of non-confidence in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government of the week on Thursday, amid simmering tensions.
French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have signed a statement aimed at collaborating more on issues ranging from Ukraine to foreign interference.
New changes to Canada's temporary foreign worker program are now in effect. Here's what to know.
A partial masking mandate has returned to Nova Scotia hospitals and provincially run healthcare facilities for visitors and healthcare workers.
Despite making up more than 4.5 per cent of Canada’s population, less than one per cent of the country's physicians identify as Indigenous, according to the Canadian Medical Association.
A Canadian pharmaceutical company is warning consumers not to use some of its eye drops because of potential microbial growth that may result in eye infections.
Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen feels 'extremely hopeful' about society's ability to push social media platforms into being safer but for change to come, she says these companies need to be motivated in a new way.
OpenAI Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati — who has been instrumental in the development of ChatGPT and the artificial intelligence image generator Dall-E — said Wednesday she is leaving the company.
A Canadian school photography company says it was hit by a ransomware attack that held about 3,500 photos of students in several Saskatchewan school divisions hostage, among others across the country.
Canadian singer K’naan has been charged with sexual assault after being arrested by police in Quebec City.
British supermodel Naomi Campbell has been barred from being a charity trustee in England and Wales for five years after the poverty charity she founded nearly two decades ago was deemed Thursday to have been 'poorly governed' with 'inadequate financial management.'
Hoda Kotb, a fixture at NBC for more than two decades, says she will leave her morning perch on the 'Today' show early next year, telling staffers 'it's time.'
A settlement was reached Thursday in a defamation lawsuit brought by electronic voting machine manufacturer Smartmatic against conservative news outlet Newsmax for airing accusations about vote manipulation in the 2020 election made by allies of former U.S. president Donald Trump.
Open AI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman (C) speaks at the Advancing Sustainable Development through Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy AI event on Sept. 23, 2024, in New York. (Bryan R. Smith/Pool Photo via AP)
Billionaire Elon Musk's social media site X has complied with Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes' orders and requested its service be re-established in the country, a source said Thursday.
A pizza chain in Edmonton claims to have the world's largest deliverable pizza.
Regina and John Zdravich left the U.S. for Italy after falling in love with the European country, then unexpectedly found themselves 'homeless.'
Home Depot was about to launch something big — really big — when the pandemic hit in the spring of 2020: a 12-foot skeleton.
Willie Jefferson doesn't like to look too far ahead, but there is something he'd like to see happen after the Winnipeg Blue Bombers host the Edmonton Elks on Friday. A victory by the Blue Bombers (8-6) in front of a third straight sellout at Princess Auto Stadium would clinch a playoff spot for the eighth consecutive season, one in which the team started 0-4.
The Chicago White Sox averted a record-breaking loss for the third straight day, beating the Los Angeles Angels 7-0 on Thursday behind Chris Flexen's sharp pitching performance.
Daniel Ricciardo, one of the most popular and likeable drivers on the Formula 1 grid, was released by Red Bull Racing on Thursday and will be replaced immediately by Liam Lawson.
Ontario's Premier Doug Ford wants to dig Canada's largest city out of its traffic woes.
A bizarre discovery was made on a dirt road in Clearview Township.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says he wants to build a tunnel under Highway 401 that would stretch from Brampton to Scarborough.
A pizza chain in Edmonton claims to have the world's largest deliverable pizza.
Sarah McLachlan is returning to her hometown of Halifax in November.
Wayne MacKay is still playing basketball twice at Mount Allison University at 87 years old.
A man from a small rural Alberta town is making music that makes people laugh.
An Indigenous artist has a buyer-beware warning ahead of Sept. 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
Police are looking to the public for help after thieves broke into a Lethbridge ice creamery, stealing from the store.
An ordinary day on the job delivering mail in East Elmwood quickly turned dramatic for Canada Post letter carrier Jared Plourde. A woman on his route was calling out in distress.
Fire has destroyed a barn and 17,000 plants at a family-owned business in Lower Coverdale, N.B.
Before influencers on social media, Canada’s Jeanne Beker was bringing the world of high fashion down to earth and as Calgary’s Glenbow Museum gets a major make-over, it will include a new exhibition showcasing the pop culture icon.
A member of the Stl’atl’imx Tribal Police Service has been charged with voyeurism following an investigation into allegations he filmed sexual encounters without the consent of his partners, the B.C. RCMP announced Thursday.
A Royal Canadian Navy warship was rearmed with missiles and munitions in Australia this week, marking the first ever overseas rearmament for the service's Halifax-class frigates.
Vancouver police blocked traffic and the SkyTrain's Millennium Line suspended service to VCC-Clark Station due to an "unstable crane" in the area Thursday.
A new, temporary, stadium-sized seasonal concert venue is coming to Toronto's north end, with the capacity to host 50,000 people at one time. Rogers Stadium will open in June 2025 at the site of the former Downsview Airport Lands, Live Nation announced Thursday.
Standardized testing results released today show that fewer Ontario students in Grades 3 and 6 met the provincial standard in reading and writing than the previous year.
An Air Canada flight headed to Toronto from Frankfurt diverted to Edinburgh due to an emergency Thursday, the airline says.
A psychiatric report has found a man accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting six women east of Calgary is fit to stand trial but his lawyer wants the court to order another hearing before the long-delayed matter resumes.
A number of families whose children attended Little Scholars childcare centers in Calgary are frustrated they haven’t received a refund after the programs were unexpectedly shut down due to safety concerns in August.
The two men arrested after a deadly roadside shooting near Calgary last month will be tried together.
Police in Gatineau, Que. are investigating the third homicide of the year in the city. A 35-year-old man has been identified as the victim following an apparent assault.
Former Ottawa resident Judy Brown is among many in Tallahassee, Florida bracing for Hurricane Helene as it barrels towards the state.
A major redevelopment project on Parliament Hill that includes eventually building a tunnel in the area of Wellington and Sparks streets is scheduled to start this October, according to the City of Ottawa.
Canadian singer K’naan has been charged with sexual assault after being arrested by police in Quebec City.
The Montreal fire department spent hours Monday battling a battery fire inside a container at the Port of Montreal.
Quebec provincial police have made an arrest in the case of a missing woman from southern Quebec.
A pizza chain in Edmonton claims to have the world's largest deliverable pizza.
Bradley Pierson, founder of Trouvay, helps Canadian police solve cold cases by matching crime scene DNA samples with volunteers’ DNA in databases. He sat down on CTV Morning Live to explain how genetic genealogy works, from finding birth parents to solving crimes.
The two men arrested after a deadly roadside shooting near Calgary last month will be tried together.
A third person has been arrested and charged in connection with the homicide of Halifax teen Devon Sinclair Marsman, who disappeared more than two years ago.
The mayor of a Nova Scotia town says recent disruptions to the ferry service that links Nova Scotia with eastern Prince Edward Island are posing a real challenge for the town's tourism industry.
New Brunswick's Progressive Conservatives announced a financial literacy program Thursday, while Liberal Leader Susan Holt vowed to "transform mental health care," and Green Leader David Coon unveiled an affordable housing plan.
One non-profit organization is laying claim to the phrase 'Every Child Matters' in an attempt to control how it is used.
An NDP MP has introduced a bill that would criminalize residential school denialism, saying it would help stop harm caused toward survivors, their families and communities.
Manitoba's NDP government is more than halfway toward its goal of hiring 1,000 health-care workers since taking office nearly a year ago, with some groups representing health-care staff applauding the news but saying it's a "drop in the bucket" when it comes to addressing staffing shortages.
The driver of a semi was injured and 22 cattle died following a rollover on Highway 39 near Midale, Sask. on Sept. 21.
As Saskatchewan awaits the election call, how are voters feeling about the leaders of Saskatchewan’s two major parties? CTV News sought to find out, in partnership with Insightrix Research.
After a lengthy meeting Wednesday night, Regina city council has landed on a location for a permanent emergency shelter.
Advocates are demanding an apology after a staff report regarding the destruction of corn crops in Wilmot Township was found to be lacking in detail.
A man has pleaded guilty to manslaughter after the 2022 death of a Cambridge resident.
Guelph police say an elderly woman has died after she was struck by a vehicle Thursday afternoon on Eramosa Road.
A lawyer defending a 14-year-old accused of setting a classmate on fire says 'voices told her to do things' prior to a fiery attack which severely injured a classmate and a teacher at Evan Hardy Collegiate earlier this month.
As Saskatchewan awaits the election call, how are voters feeling about the leaders of Saskatchewan’s two major parties? CTV News sought to find out, in partnership with Insightrix Research.
In a human trafficking trial Tuesday, a Bangladeshi woman says she was sexually assaulted nearly two years ago during her time working at a small-town Saskatchewan restaurant.
A northern Ontario man was in the bush hunting for partridge with his fiancé when he came across a big bull moose entangled in some hydro lines in his antlers.
Canadian musician Jacob Hoggard's defence lawyer continued her cross-examination of the complainant in his sexual assault trial in a northeastern Ontario court today, where he has pleaded not guilty.
A pedestrian is dead following a collision with a commercial motor vehicle on Highway 17 west of Thunder Bay on Thursday morning.
Jonathan Halfyard lived with his mother Carolyn Carter, 69, in west London. But things took a deadly turn on April 20 of last year when she called police to have her youngest child removed from the house.
Some London renters say a new policy by their landlord to charge visitors for parking amounts to a corporate cash grab.
Officials in Grand Bend are trying to avoid car rally chaos, similar to what was seen in London on Saturday evening.
Residents living near Sunnidale Park in Barrie are calling for immediate action to address a growing coyote problem in their neighbourhood.
Provincial police say a second complainant has come forward with new allegations against a former aquatic supervisor in Orillia in a child luring and sexual exploitation case.
Two people were hospitalized following a collision in Angus Thursday morning.
As Windsor’s ward meetings roll on, residents on the east end say they’re tired of hearing about crime concerns downtown, pointing out they have problems too.
As respiratory illness season nears, local pharmacists are reminding people in Windsor-Essex and Chatham-Kent to stay safe and prevent unnecessary visits to the hospital by staying up to date on vaccinations.
The Windsor Police Service (WPS) has arrested a “wanted fugitive”, wanted on multiple warrants in Ontario.
A Royal Canadian Navy warship was rearmed with missiles and munitions in Australia this week, marking the first ever overseas rearmament for the service's Halifax-class frigates.
A member of the Stl’atl’imx Tribal Police Service has been charged with voyeurism following an investigation into allegations he filmed sexual encounters without the consent of his partners, the B.C. RCMP announced Thursday.
British Columbia NDP leader David Eby was upstaged by a wasp that flew down his shirt and stung him during a news conference.
A pair of runaway pigs are in the custody of an animal sanctuary in the Okanagan after evading police and volunteers for hours earlier this week.
The Red Bridge, a historic landmark in Kamloops, B.C., was completely destroyed by fire early Thursday morning.
Animal protection officers in British Columbia have rescued three pit bulls – including one that gave birth to 10 puppies – from a rat-infested home in Kelowna.
Lethbridge police have laid charges against a man accused of sexually assaulting a teen girl at a party.
A Cardston, Alta., woman is $1 million richer after a Lotto Max draw in early August.
Alberta's Chief Mountain border crossing will soon close for the season.
A northern Ontario man was in the bush hunting for partridge with his fiancé when he came across a big bull moose entangled in some hydro lines in his antlers.
A pedestrian is dead following a collision with a commercial motor vehicle on Highway 17 west of Thunder Bay on Thursday morning.
Every other day, Derek Moonias drives 15 minutes to the airport in Neskantaga First Nation and fills his pickup truck with cases of bottled water flown in on the dime of the federal government.
A soccer game in England on Tuesday night drove a spike in online traffic across the Atlantic to a website launched by the Newfoundland and Labrador government.
Newfoundland and Labrador sponsored a minor football team in England, now they’re about to play one of the biggest clubs in European soccer.
Newfoundland and Labrador's chief medical officer is monitoring the rise of whooping cough infections across the province as cases of the highly contagious disease continue to grow across Canada.
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
