Bianca Andreescu achieved an important victory at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, where she triumphed over No. 11 seed Elena Rybakina with a score of 6-2, 6-4, moving her into the Round of 16. This win signifies a significant shift in their competition, as Andreescu had previously lost to Rybakina in all three of their earlier matches, including just two weeks ago in Madrid.
Impressive Performance at Foro Italico
At the Foro Italico, the 2019 US Open champion showcased her determination, taking down Rybakina, who recently won the Rome tournament in 2023. The match lasted 1 hour and 27 minutes, marking Andreescu’s first victory over the Kazakh player, who also claimed the 2022 Wimbledon title.
Andreescu, who has faced numerous injuries since her breakout season in 2019, has only participated in four events this year after a six-month absence from the tour. However, she is demonstrating impressive form in Rome, having recorded two consecutive wins against Top 20 players, including her previous match against No. 20 seed Donna Vekic.
This marks the first time Andreescu has achieved multiple Top 20 victories in the same tournament since her remarkable run to the US Open title five and a half years ago. Overall, it’s the fourth time she has beaten multiple Top 20 players at a single event, with similar achievements in 2019 at WTA 1000 events in Indian Wells and Toronto, where she ultimately won the title.
Andreescu had an outstanding first set, scoring nine winners with only four unforced errors and winning all her second-serve points. The second set was more competitive as Rybakina’s powerful forehands started to find their mark. Despite Rybakina having break points at 2-1 and 3-2, Andreescu held her ground and finished the match without losing her serve. This victory marks the first time she has won a WTA 1000 match without dropping serve since defeating Jennifer Brady in Beijing in 2019.
With this win, Andreescu is back in the fourth round in Rome for the first time since she reached the quarterfinals on her debut in 2022. She will now face a Top 10 player, No. 8 seed Zheng Qinwen from China, who cruised past No. 26 seed Magdalena Frech with a score of 6-3, 6-2. Zheng won their only previous encounter, which took place at the 2022 Toronto tournament, and if Andreescu can turn the tables this time, it would mark her first victory over a Top 10 player since she advanced past No. 10 Beatriz Haddad Maia in Tokyo last fall.