Mississauga tennis star gives it another go at Grand Slam tourney in France

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Published May 30, 2023 at 11:29 am

Mississauga's Bianca Andreescu in action March 2023 in Indian Wells, California. (Photo: Mauricio Paz via Tennis Canada Twitter)

Mississauga’s Bianca Andreescu faces a tough first-round opponent today (May 30) in Paris as she seeks to turn in a good showing at the second Grand Slam tennis event of the year.

Andreescu, 22, ranked No. 42 on the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) circuit, takes on former Grand Slam champ Victoria Azarenka, 33, of Belarus, ranked No. 18 by the WTA, in opening-round play at the French Open.

The match is scheduled to begin just before noon and will once again test Andreescu as she continues to recover from torn ligaments in her ankle.

The Mississaugan returned to action on April 28 at the Madrid Open in Spain just about a month after tearing ankle ligaments on March 27 at the Miami Open.

Ranked No. 27 when she took to the court in late April, Andreescu has slipped 15 spots in the WTA rankings since competing in Spain.

In Paris this week, she’s looking to improve upon her 2022 French Open showing, when she was knocked out in the second round.

The ankle injury suffered during fourth-round action at the Miami Open did, at least temporarily, put the brakes on Andreescu’s journey back to what she hopes will be a place once again among the women’s tennis elite.

She had been showing recent signs of getting back into the top form that earned her a shocking U.S. Open win in 2019. She had climbed to No. 31 in WTA singles rankings prior to the Miami tournament, and then climbed briefly to No. 27.

Both those rankings were Andreescu’s highest since returning to the game after a lengthy layoff in which she didn’t compete at all in 2021.

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