18-Year-Old Prodigy Mboko Provides Injury Update After Ugly Fall Ahead of Montreal Final

Thursday, 07 August 2025 at 14:05

byErik Virostko

Victoria Mboko is close to winning the biggest title in her tennis career, but an injury might be standing in her way.

The 18-year-old Canadian has been delighting the crowd in Montreal over the past two weeks. She reached the final at the 2025 Canadian Open after eliminating Elena Rybakina in what was a three-set battle that was decided in a third-set tie-break.

Previously at the event, Mboko bested the top-seeded Coco Gauff, and ahead of the final match, it's clear that her tennis will not be something that could decrease her chances of succeeding against Naomi Osaka, who is also on a great run, her best since becoming a mother.

Mboko, however, will possibly have to deal with an injury that she sustained at the start of the third set against Rybakina. The teenager fell on her right wrist, and she even needed a medical timeout to address the issue.

Naturally, during her post-match press conference, the first question that the Canadian faced was about her wrist. She admitted that adrenaline helped her to get through the match, and she wasn't really sure of the state of her wrist, even though she felt like it was better than before.

"Yeah, it's feeling a lot better. When I fell, of course, in the match, it was a lot of, like, emotions. It was during the match, a lot of adrenaline. It was kind of a little bit painful during that, but it's definitely cooled down a lot more. I'm just going to take care of it tonight and just have some rest."

Mboko reveals the impact of the home crowd on her success in Montreal

Throughout the two weeks in Montreal, Mboko has been heavily supported by the home crowd. Her semi-final opponent, Elena Rybakina, spoke about how challenging it is to face the player and the crowd, and the Canadian also spoke about how playing at home impacts her.

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Mboko admitted that having the crowd behind her has been helping her a lot, as they help her in crucial moments. Having someone always supporting her helps her to avoid negative thoughts.

"I feel like every day I've been thanking them for how much they've been helping me. But I mean, playing in front of the home crowd obviously has its advantages. You always have everyone pumping you up as much as they can."

"It really pulls me through in the tough moments where I'm maybe not as positive, but you know, everybody has been really positive with me this week. I feel really blessed to have that kind of support."

Standing between her and the WTA 1000 title is only Naomi Osaka. The Japanese player is a former World No. 1 and knows what it feels like to play big matches, so the experience will certainly be on her side. Mboko, on the other hand, is motivated to lift the trophy in Montreal.

"I mean, I actually didn't really think of it until now. Of course, I have the opportunity to lift that beautiful trophy, but you know, I still have one match to go. I'm always kind of focused on the present moment. I don't really focus on the end, but it's obviously a vision I would like to see. That's what I'm playing for, so..."