Rafael Nadal is the top seed and defending champion in Montreal this week and he’s also the favourite for the title with Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer missing out.
“When I get to a tournament, I try to work on my things and work on my game. It doesn’t matter whether Novak or Roger are here or not here,” said Nadal.
“There are many great players here, so I have to just prepare myself as soon as possible and be ready for the action.”
In the absence of Djokovic and Federer, struggling Alexander Zverev is the third seed.
Zverev split with Ivan Lendl as his coach last month and is desperately seeking some form heading into the US Open.
“It has been a horrible year, right? I am still Top 10 in the ATP Race To London and I’m still No. 5 in the ATP Rankings right now,” said Zverev.
“You can always see things with the glass half empty or half full.
”It has not been the best year for me, but I am still No. 9 in the Race, competing for London and the biggest tournaments in the world. For me, the year can only get better. I hope it will start happening here. I hope it will go through the hard-court swing in the US and we will see. It is not all as bad as everybody thinks it is.”
Elsewhere, Canadians Felix Auger-Aliassime, Denis Shapovalov, Vasek Pospisil and Milos Raonic are sure to get big support at their home event.
How to watch the Rogers Cup
Coverage of the Rogers Cup will be broadcast on Amazon Prime Video from August 5, Monday.
This year, Prime Video will broadcast on-site, live studio coverage across tournaments, including at the BNP Paribas Open from Indian Wells, the Fever Tree Championships from The Queens Club, the US Open, and the Nitto ATP Finals from The O2.
On-site field reporters will bring customers the latest action, analysis and commentary right from the court side at many tournaments.
In addition to 37 ATP Tour events and the US Open available exclusively on Prime Video with a Prime membership, Prime members in the UK who subscribe to Eurosport Player through Prime Video Channels for an additional £6.99 per month (following a 7-day free trial) will also benefit from full coverage of the French Open, and daily highlights and live coverage from the men’s and women’s finals of Wimbledon in 2019.