MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Bianca Andreescu is following the path that brought her back to the tennis tour after a mental health hiatus and put her back in the win column on Monday with a win over her rival at the Australian Open. what he calls an “Aha” moment on a beach in Costa Rica during a spiritual retreat about a year ago.
Here, then, is how the 22-year-old Canadian described that epiphany in an interview with the Associated Press in Melbourne Park.
Andreescu, who defeated Serena Williams in the 2019 US Open final as a teenager, went through a series of health problems, including contracting COVID-19, which derailed her career in 2020 and slowed her down in 2021 as well. He also parted ways with his longtime coach. In general, a lot happened. after defeating 25th seed Marie Buuzkova 6-2, 6-4 on Court 3 on Monday, Andreescu used the word “intense” to describe the round, and she has gone six months without. play between October 2021 and April 2022, including last year’s Australian Open.
“That’s when I started asking myself, is this worth it? Is this life worth living? Because I was very stressed about many things. as I looked at myself in the mirror,” Andreescu said. “Just holding a tennis racket, I didn’t feel happy anymore. Or content. Because usually going to the court is my escape, and it stopped feeling like that.”
He realized he needed to reevaluate where he was and where he was going.
“Do I keep pushing and pushing and hoping for the best? Or should I take a step back? So I did it. I took a break. And I did other things besides tennis. I have done a lot of charity work. I traveled to several places. Catching up with friends I hadn’t seen in two or three years. I started playing football again. I skated. I started practicing martial arts. I was dancing. A bunch of other things. And it really made me appreciate tennis more,” Andreescu said with a big smile. “Honestly, I didn’t know when I was going to pick up a racket again.”
While in Costa Rica last February, Andreescu found a new way of thinking.
“I felt much better in 2022 than I did in 2021 when I felt so down after the losses,” he said. “Now I just want to get back on the court. I feel very motivated.”
It certainly seemed that way against Buzkova, a US Open quarterfinalist last year.
Andreescu mixed up his jabs and overpowered his opponent as he opted for big chops over groundstrokes.
“Just didn’t give me a lot of room to breathe and get my momentum going,” Buzkova said.
Andreescu said he felt a mixture of nerves and relief at the end of Monday because he really wanted to win.
Which she did and will now face 100th-ranked Spaniard Cristina Bucsa as the trip continues.
“I like to say what my mother always tells me. “Follow your heart.” I did so. I have a strong intuition, I would say, and it seems to me, like many others. So trust your gut,” Andreescu said, pointing his interlaced fingers to his heart. “If you don’t feel good about something for a while, I didn’t feel good for two or three months, I would say take a step back if you can.”
A BIG STEP FOR THE CHINESE MAN
Junior qualifier Shang Yunchen became the first Chinese man to win an Australian Open main draw match in the professional era, defeating Germany’s Oskar Otte 6-2, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 7-5.
“I think it’s huge for Chinese men’s tennis,” said the 17-year-old Shang, who has hit 34 winners. “We had some really good players on the women’s side, but not as many big names on the men’s side.”
Shang added. “I hope we can do something big in the future.”
Shang, the junior runner-up at the 2021 US Open, is the first 17-year-old to win his first Grand Slam match since current No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz did so at the Australian Open two years ago.
“Quite an achievement,” Shang said. “Looking at Carlos, he’s the best player in the world right now. Just watching him play on the court really inspires me, inspires young, young players.”
China fielded three men in a Grand Slam main draw for the first time.
On Monday, Wu Yibing lost his first round match against France’s Corentin Moutet. Zhang Zhizhen plays American Ben Shelton on Tuesday.
LOOKING AT THE ACCOUNTS
Jessica Pegula prepared for her first round win at the Australian Open by watching the Buffalo Bills beat the Miami Dolphins 34-31 in the opening game of the NFL playoffs on TV.
The No. 3-seeded Pegula, whose parents own the Bills and the NHL’s Sabres, said he woke up at 7 a.m. Monday in Melbourne, which was 3 p.m. Sunday in New York, and watched most of the second half. before continuing the defeat. Jacqueline Christian 6-0, 6-1 at Margaret Court Arena.
“It was a tough game. Not the prettiest win,” Pegula said of the Bills. “Sure, I think it’s an ugly win.”
“It’s like the first match, the playoffs, everybody’s kind of nervous, a lot of tension,” he added, likening it to jitters before the opening match of a Grand Slam.
“Obviously it was fun for them to get that win before I got on the court,” Pegula said. “It wouldn’t really affect me, I don’t think, but I would just be mad that they lost.”
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Associated Press freelancer Simon Cambers contributed to this report.
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Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter https://twitter.com/HowardFendrich
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AP Tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
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