Rafael Jodar is on the brink of rewriting tennis history after the Spanish 19-year-old dispatched Arthur Filis 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 in a rain-affected Canadian Open quarter-final on Tuesday night in Montreal.
The result guarantees Jodar will climb to at least 11th in the ATP rankings, a remarkable leap considering he began 2026 ranked 165th in the world. Should he defeat American Brandon Nakashima in Wednesday's semi-final, Jodar could surpass Boris Becker's record for the fastest climb from inside the top 100 to the top 10. Becker accomplished the feat in 210 days; Jodar would do it in just 140.
There is a catch, however. Jodar also needs defending champion Ben Shelton to fall against Learner Tien in the other semi-final. Shelton has looked formidable all week, dismissing Jakub Mensik 6-3 6-1 in just 72 minutes without dropping a single set in the tournament. Even a final showdown against Shelton would give Jodar a path into the top 10 and into the record books with a win.
After beating Filis, Jodar described his performance as playing "a very high level" and praised his ability to stay composed during the most critical pressure moments of the match.
Meanwhile, over in Toronto, Elena Rybakina turned in a gutsy performance to eliminate Naomi Osaka 4-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 in the WTA Canadian Open quarter-finals. Osaka broke early and controlled the first set, but Rybakina steadied herself, took the second via a tight tiebreak, and then made the decisive break in the seventh game of the third set to seal her progress.
TennisDraw users who locked in Rybakina for a deep run here are looking sharp after this dramatic victory.
