Bianca Andreescu, the winner of the 2019 women’s championship, along with her Canadian compatriot Carson Branstine, both secured victories on Wednesday to progress to the final stage of U.S. Open qualifying matches.
Andreescu, hailing from Mississauga, Ontario, triumphed with a 6-0, 6-3 score against Veronika Podrez from Ukraine in the second round of the women’s singles qualifying event. The 26-year-old Canadian managed to break her opponent five times out of 12 opportunities, setting up a match on Thursday against either Tamara Zidansek from Slovenia or Guiomar Maristany from Spain.
On the other hand, Branstine achieved a 6-4, 7-5 win over Linda Fruhvirtova from Czechia. The 25-year-old athlete, who holds dual citizenship and was born in California but represents her mother’s homeland, converted all five of her break-point chances and delivered 22 winners compared to Fruhvirtova’s eight. Branstine is set to compete against Robin Montgomery from the United States on Thursday for a chance to secure one of the remaining main-draw positions.
Notably, Andreescu made Canadian history during the 2019 U.S. Open by becoming the sole Canadian to clinch a singles Grand Slam title, defeating the renowned Serena Williams in the final.
In her last appearance at the tournament in 2024, Andreescu faced a first-round defeat against Maria Sakkari. Conversely, Branstine experienced an early exit in last year’s U.S. Open qualifying round. Her Grand Slam debut occurred in 2025 at Wimbledon, where she emerged from qualifying, even defeating her friend and occasional doubles partner, Andreescu, in the process.
In additional second-round qualifying matches on Wednesday, Vancouver’s veteran player Rebecca Marino succumbed to a 6-2, 6-4 loss against Elena Pridankina from Russia. In the men’s second-round qualifying event, Alexis Galarneau from Levis, Quebec, fell short with a score of 7-6 (3), 6-2 against Dalibor Svrcina from Czechia. Liam Draxl from Newmarket, Ontario, was scheduled to face American Andrew Johnson later on Wednesday.
