Mississauga tennis star rises to the challenge at US Open

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Published September 1, 2022 at 10:47 am

bianca_andreescu

It’s becoming readily apparent that Bianca Andreescu saves some of her best tennis for the bright lights of New York City.

In the midst of a roller coaster journey back to what she hopes will be a prominent ranking on the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) circuit and only a day after publicly apologizing to her long-standing sponsor for some less-than-flattering remarks, the 22-year-old Mississauga native turned in a dominant late-night performance yesterday (Aug. 31) at the US Open.

Playing in second-round action at Louis Armstrong Stadium in Flushing Meadows, Andreescu (WTA No. 48) disposed of Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia (WTA No. 15) in masterful fashion, taking the match in two sets, 6-2, 6-4.

The 9 p.m. scheduled match against Haddad Maia, finalist at the recent National Bank Open tournament in Toronto, didn’t get underway until 11:30 p.m. and ran well past midnight.

Next up for Andreescu is a third-round match on Friday against France’s Caroline Garcia (WTA No. 17).

The Mississauga tennis star, who burst onto the scene with a stunning US Open title in New York in 2019, has now won 12 of 13 matches played at the Grand Slam event.

Andreescu has steadily climbed the WTA rankings this year to her current No. 48 slot, and seems poised to improve upon that this week in the Big Apple.

She opened the tourney this past Monday by besting France’s Harmony Tan (WTA No. 112) 6-0, 3-6, 6-1.

It was during that match Andreescu was seen and heard complaining about her tennis dress, supplied by Nike.

In the midst of the match with Tan, Andreescu approached the chair umpire to ask for an additional bathroom break so she could change outfits. The windy conditions were reportedly blowing her skirt up, which affected her shots.

In making her case to the umpire that a wardrobe change shouldn’t count as a bathroom break, Andreescu said, “…I mean, it’s not my fault. It’s Nike’s fault. This dress is so, so bad…I need to go change.”

The Canadian was granted the wardrobe break and came back to dispose of Tan.

The following day, Andreescu publicly apologized to the athletic wear giant. She and Nike have enjoyed a long-standing relationship.

“I could have definitely used a different choice of wording. So, I apologize to anyone I disrespected. I love Nike and I hope I can be with them for the rest of my life,” Andreescu told reporters.

After her successful 2019 results, Andreescu fell on tougher times soon after. For two years or so, she battled injuries, a bout with COVID-19 and mental health issues.

She didn’t play at all in 2020.

Andreescu’s results so far this year have been mixed. She’s advanced far at some tournaments, while unexpectedly bowing out early in others.

Her roller coaster comeback journey took a bit of a dip at the prestigious Wimbledon tournament in London earlier this summer. She was eliminated from the major event in the second round, falling 6-4, 7-6 to Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina (WTA No. 23 at the time).

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