WHAT HAPPENED: A couple of young Canadian stars lit up the New York City night on Friday with electrifying wins at the 2021 US Open. Bianca Andreescu, probably the biggest Canadian tennis star of them all, continued that momentum to begin Saturday’s action.
Andreescu, the 2019 US Open champion, was thoroughly dominant in all aspects of her third-round match against lucky loser Greet Minnen, defeating the Belgian, 6-1, 6-2, in 67 minutes on the court at Louis Armstrong Stadium. Playing on the same court in which Montreal native Felix Auger-Aliassime pulled out a five-set thriller against Roberto Bautista Agut just 12 hours prior, Andreescu — a native of Mississauga, Ontario — was sharp in pounding out 21 winners and only 11 unforced errors. In a first set that lasted only 23 minutes, Andreescu lost a total of three points on her serve and 11 points overall. Andreescu becomes the second Canadian to reach the Round of 16 on the women’s side, joining 18-year-old Leylah Fernandez, who shocked two-time US Open champion Naomi Osaka in three sets on Arthur Ashe Stadium Friday night.
Not only has Andreescu advanced to the Round of 16 in each of her two appearances in Flushing Meadows, she continues her undefeated run at the US Open, now a perfect 10-0 in matches at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
“I think I played really well today,” Andreescu said. “This is what I have been working towards in practice, and I'm very pleased with my return games, with my service games, with my movement on court, also with my attitude.”
Rafael Nadal won his first 31 matches at Roland Garros while Rod Laver won Wimbledon in his first two appearances at the All England Club as a professional (1968, 1969). It might be too early to put Andreescu alongside that company, but her current form suggests that she may be the toughest out of any of the women remaining in the US Open draw going into the second week.
WHAT IT MEANS: Getting better throughout a tournament and peaking toward the latter stages is always a goal during any tournament, and Andreescu is certainly starting to show signs of upping her game in New York in 2021. After being pushed to three sets — and winning 7-5 in the third set — in her opening round match against Viktorija Golubic, a match in which she got 66% of her first serves in, she cranked that number up to 78% in today’s match, and she also won 80% of her second-serve points.
MATCH POINT: Minnen’s defeat was actually her second loss to a Canadian at the 2021 US Open. The lucky loser went down to Vancouver native Rebecca Marino in the final round of US Open qualifying, 3-6, 6-3, 2-6. When Jelena Ostapenko withdrew from the US Open just before the start of the tournament on Monday, Minnen became a last-minute entrant. She also is now $180,000 richer after her run to the third round.
