Victoria Mboko: Who is teenager taking tennis world by storm after winning Canadian Open final?
Victoria Mboko beat Naomi Osaka in the National Bank Open final to win her first WTA 1000 event; the US Open is live on Sky Sports Tennis and Sky Sports+, streaming service NOW and the Sky Sports app from August 24
Friday 8 August 2025 21:52, UK
If you're a tennis fan, you've probably heard the name Victoria Mboko in the last few weeks.
Mboko is taking the tennis world by storm after beating Naomi Osaka in the National Bank Open final in Montreal. The 18-year-old had already defeated 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina in the semi-finals, after upset wins over top seed Coco Gauff and Spain's Jessica Bouzas Maneiro.
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"I watched her play," Osaka said of Mboko ahead of their final meeting. "I thought it was really impressive how she stayed calm. That's really impressive for an 18-year-old.
"It's really cool, I guess, that she's doing this at her home tournament."
Who is Mboko?
Mboko is an 18-year-old American-born, Canadian-raised tennis player and is the youngest of four tennis-playing siblings. Born in Charlotte, North Carolina, to Congolese parents, she grew up in Toronto.
She showed promise as a junior, making her WTA Tour main-draw debut at 15 years old at the 2022 Canadian Open in the doubles draw, partnering Kayla Cross.
Her first singles appearance came at the 2022 Championnats Banque Nationale de Granby, where she received a wild card and lost to fellow Canadian Rebecca Marino. That same year, Mboko won her first professional singles title on the ITF World Tennis Tour.
Coached by former world No 3 and 1998 Wimbledon finalist Nathalie Tauziat, Mboko qualified for her first Grand Slam main draw at the French Open earlier this year, where she reached the third round, while she also pulled off an upset against 25th seed Magdalena Frech in the first round at Wimbledon.
What tournaments has Mboko won?
Mboko won her first professional singles title at the ITF W25 tournament in Saskatoon in 2022, a title she successfully defended in 2023.
Mboko began the year ranked No 333. She started 2025 playing in a pair of ITF W35s in the Caribbean and won both of them.
But it didn't stop there.
The teenager racked up 33 wins and just three losses, and is projected to climb into the world's top 25 when the rankings are updated next week.
Mboko received a Miami wild card, where she claimed her first tour-level victory over Camila Osorio, before pushing Spain's Paula Badosa to a decider, which the teen lost.
Having impressed after qualifying for her first Grand Slam main draw at the French Open, Mboko progress has only gathered pace since, culminating in her stunning triumph in Montreal.
Mboko is the first Canadian to reach the WTA 1000 event's final since Bianca Andreescu's title run in 2019. She's also the youngest woman to reach the semis since Belinda Bencic's 2015 win in Toronto.
What do tennis experts and players think?
Former Wimbledon finalist Genie Bouchard said Mboko's rise "has been nothing short of incredible".
The recently-retired Bouchard said: "Anyone who knew her in Canadian tennis would not be surprised. She has so much power to her game. I remember practising with her when she was 14 or 15 years old and she was smacking forehands and bowling me off the court, so we all knew she would be really good.
"I'm so happy to see it happening at such a big event like this as well. She seems to be handling the moment really well, taking it all in her stride and using it as motivation."
After Mboko's win over Gauff, Bouchard said: "I'm very impressed with how cool, calm and collected she was on the court. She looked much more mature than her 18 years of age. You see her on the court and she's handling it like she's done it a hundred times."
Gauff was sent crashing out of the National Bank Open in Montreal in straight sets by Mboko, but praised the teenager's efforts.
"She's very athletic. She's a great ball striker, and she seems pretty positive out there on the court, doesn't get really too negative," Gauff said.
"I don't know her too well, but l have spoken to her a little bit since Rome.
"I think she has a great support system around her, and that's important when you're young and on tour. Hopefully, we have many more battles, and I look forward to playing her again in the future."
Former Wimbledon champion Rybakina, who went down to a 1-6 7-5 7-6 (7-4) defeat to teenager Mboko in the semi-finals, said: "I think that she served really well in these important moments. Overall, I think it was a very close match, like a big fight. So it could go any way, but went hers. I think she played also really well."
Osaka, who said she forgot to congratulate Mboko during the trophy ceremony after losing the Montreal final, said: "Thanks Montreal it's been a really great run. I also want to say sorry and congratulations to Victoria. You played a great match and have an amazing career ahead! I realise I didn't congratulate you on the court. Honestly I was in a daze and I was so focused on not having the same speech as IW 2018 finals or the Jenny/Jennifer situation that I tried to make my speech as short as possible. Thanks everyone for the week, see you in NY."
Follow Mboko's journey live on Sky Sports throughout the year and watch the ATP and WTA Tours, as well as the US Open in New York, live on Sky Sports in 2025 or stream with NOW and the Sky Sports app, giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50 per cent more live sport this year at no extra cost. Find out more here.
