Andreescu among trio of Canadians eliminated in French Open qualifying
Bianca Andreescu’s French Open Qualifying Run Ends with Tough Loss
Bianca Andreescu’s comeback at the French Open hit a snag on Wednesday as she was eliminated from the second round of the qualifying tournament in Paris. The 17th seed from Mississauga, Ont., had a chance to close out the match against Japan’s Nao Hibino but couldn’t convert, ultimately falling 2-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 in a match that lasted over two and a half hours on the clay courts of Roland Garros.
Andreescu wasn’t the only Canadian to bow out of qualifying on Wednesday. Tamara Korpatsch of Germany defeated 24th seed Marina Stakusic from Mississauga 6-2, 6-1, while Rebeka Masarova of Switzerland cruised to a 6-0, 6-3 victory over Carson Branstine, who represents Canada internationally.
The 24-year-old former world No. 4 and 2019 U.S. Open champion has been making a comeback after a six-month layoff due to emergency appendix surgery in February. Although clay isn’t her strongest surface, Andreescu had a decent run at the WTA 1000 Italian Open earlier this month, reaching the fourth round.
Meanwhile, rising star Victoria Mboko from Toronto is the last Canadian standing in qualifying and will play her second-round match against Kathinka von Deichmann of Liechtenstein on Thursday.
In other news, Felix Auger-Aliassime of Montreal secured a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard of France in the second round of the Hamburg Open. Seeded sixth in Hamburg, Auger-Aliassime is using the ATP 500 tournament as a warm-up for the French Open after withdrawing from the Italian Open due to a sore back. He is set to face France’s Alexandre Muller in the quarterfinals after Muller pulled off an upset against top seed Alexander Zverev.
As the tennis season progresses, Canadian fans will be watching closely to see how their favorite players fare on the court. Stay tuned for more updates on their performances in upcoming tournaments.
