Putting his booming serve to good use in Montreal, the Argentine hurled down nine aces in a 6-3 6-4 victory in the round of 32. Popyrin only made his way into the 2026 tournament by eliminating compatriot Thanasi Kokkinakis in the final round of qualifying. He then came from a set down to defeat Roman Andres Burruchaga 4-6 7-5 6-3 in the first round before upsetting No.32 seed Raphael Collignon 6-4-6-3. In some of the other matches, No.5 seed Ben Shelton advanced with a 6-3 6-2 win over Zizou Bergs while No.13 seed Jakub Mensik beat Terence Atmane 7-5 6-4. Casper Ruud crashed out though, with the Norwegian No.9 seed beaten 7-6 (8-6) 6-3 by Brazilian Joao Fonseca.