If you don’t know her name now, don’t worry, you soon won’t be able to forget it.
17-year-old Canadian Bianca Andreescu has had a rapid rise up the rankings in 2017. Her season has been highlighted by two junior Grand Slam doubles titles with fellow Canuck Carson Branstine, a pivotal win in Canada’s Fed Cup tie against Kazakhstan in February, and, most recently, a monumental upset over world no. 13 Kristina Mladenovic in Washington.
Hometown girl @Bandreescu_ sends love to her fans as she prepares for her first #RogersCup! 🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/mSj9VuhZht
— National Bank Open (@NBOtoronto) August 6, 2017
She started the year as the world no. 293. On August 7 she will achieve a new career-high ranking of 143. Andreescu holds a 22-8 record on the season, including two ITF titles in Rancho Sante Fe and Santa Margherita di Pula. She qualified for her first Grand Slam main draw without dropping at set at Wimbledon this past July.
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Last week, Andreescu made history as she became the youngest Canadian since 1988 to win a WTA main draw match – she defeated world no. 73 Camila Giorgi 5-7, 6-3, 6-4. A big statement was made in her following match as the 17-year-old Mississauga native pulled off a massive upset by defeating world no. 13 Kristina Mladenovic 6-2, 6-3.
This is Andreescu’s first appearance in the Rogers Cup main draw. She’s played in the qualifying draw for the past two years. It will surely be a special homecoming for Andreescu who grew up visiting the Rogers Cup site.
http://twitter.com/Bandreescu_/status/893874339833147393
Without hesitation, Andreescu proudly stated that her season highlight was her victory in Fed Cup against Kazakhstan earlier this year in Montreal. The 17-year-old said:
Playing my first Fed Cup tie in Montreal was a very big achievement for me, and beating a Top 50 player [Yaroslava Shvedova].
Cool under pressure with strong, aggressive strokes from the baseline, Andreescu has proven that age is just a number. During her pre-tournament press she referred to Belinda Bencic’s thrilling title run in 2015 – the last time the women were in Toronto and the time a teenager was crowned a champion. The next generation of Canadian tennis talent is looking good with players such as Andreescu, Denis Shapovalov and Felix Auger-Aliassime.
Click here to read more about Bianca’s accomplishments.
