Andreescu happy to earn first main draw win at Wimbledon

Tennis – WTA 1000 – Italian Open – Foro Italico, Rome, Italy – May 10, 2022 Canada’s Bianca Andreescu in action during her first round match against Britain’s Emma Raducanu REUTERS/Alberto Lingria

June 29 (Reuters) – Bianca Andreescu said she was pleased to earn her first main draw win at Wimbledon at the third attempt, five years on from a nervous debut at the grasscourt Grand Slam.

Both of the Canadian’s previous appearances at the All England Club had ended in first-round exits – to Kristina Kucova in 2017 and Alize Cornet last year.

But the 2019 U.S. Open champion needed less than an hour to beat Emina Bektas 6-1 6-3 on Tuesday.

“I was talking to my trainer about my first time at Wimbledon, and it was great. At my first three qualifiers, I was killing it,” Andreescu told reporters.

“I go to the main site and I completely froze.

“I remember I could not put a forehand on the court. So looking back at that and finally getting a win here in the main draw means a lot to me. That was like five years ago.

“It was my first Grand Slam too. I didn’t really think I would really do anything, but now I have bigger dreams.”

The 22-year-old, who returned to action in Stuttgart in April following a six-month mental health hiatus, faces Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina in the second round.

“(Rybakina is) playing really good tennis right now. I think her game really suits the grass, so I’m expecting a tough match,” she added.

“I have practiced with her a couple of times – not on grass – so I kind of know how she hits. I know she fights really hard, so I’ve got to fight harder.”

Reporting by Hritika Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.