Mississauga’s Andreescu continues winning ways in Italy

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Published May 11, 2022 at 10:58 am

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Bianca Andreescu said recently that her passion for tennis has returned.

If the early results at the Italian Open being held this week in Rome are any indication, the Mississauga tennis star certainly appears to be enjoying herself.

Andreescu, 21, playing in only her third tournament since taking a break in 2019 due to a knee injury and mental health concerns, defeated Spain’s Nuria Parrizas-Diaz 6-3, 7-6 today (May 11) in a second-round match.

Parrizas-Diaz, 30, is currently ranked 51st in Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings while Andreescu checks in at No. 90 on the list.

With the win, Andreescu advances to the round of 16, where she’ll face Croatia’s Petra Martic, the WTA’s 47th-ranked player, on Thursday.

Andreescu defeated England’s Emma Raducanu (WTA No. 12) in first-round action on Tuesday when the latter athlete retired from play due to a back injury.

The Mississaugan was up 6-2, 2-1 when the Toronto-born Raducanu, 19, winner of the 2021 US Open, decided she couldn’t continue the match.

Andreescu, who burst onto the world tennis scene with a surprise US Open win in 2019, told media on Tuesday at the Italian Open that the past few years have been tough for her, but she’s slowly “getting to my top form” again.

On May 1, Andreescu defeated the United States’ Danielle Collins 6-1, 6-1 at the Mutua Madrid Open for her first win over a top-10 opponent since 2019.

Collins was ranked No. 8 at the time (now 9th).

In April, Andreescu returned to the court after a six-month absence to play at the Prosche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany.

Andreescu has battled through a number of injuries since capturing the hearts of many in this country in 2019 when she won the US Open, the first Canadian to win a Grand Slam singles title.

Over the last three years, her play has been limited to just 36 matches due to a knee injury and COVID-19. When she did play, she was inconsistent and bowed out of tournaments early.

She says she has taken the time off to prepare herself both physically and mentally, and adds her passion for the game has returned.

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