Bianca Andreescu, the winner of the 2019 women’s title at the U.S. Open, along with Canadian player Carson Branstine, triumphed in their matches on Wednesday, securing spots in the final round of U.S. Open qualifying. Andreescu, hailing from Mississauga, Ontario, clinched a 6-0, 6-3 victory over Veronika Podrez of Ukraine in the women’s singles qualifying tournament’s second round. The 26-year-old Canadian managed to break her opponent five times out of 12 opportunities, leading her to a match scheduled for Thursday against either Tamara Zidansek of Slovenia or Guiomar Maristany of Spain.
On the other hand, Branstine achieved a 6-4, 7-5 win over Linda Fruhvirtova from Czechia. The 25-year-old dual citizen, born in California but representing her mother’s homeland, capitalized on all five break-point chances and delivered 22 winners compared to Fruhvirtova’s eight. Branstine is set to face Robin Montgomery of the United States for a chance to secure one of the remaining main-draw positions.
Notably, Andreescu made history at the 2019 U.S. Open by becoming the first Canadian to claim a singles Grand Slam victory, defeating the renowned Serena Williams in the final. She last participated in the tournament in 2024, experiencing a first-round defeat against Maria Sakkari.
Meanwhile, Branstine faced an early exit in the qualifying round at the previous year’s U.S. Open. Her Grand Slam debut occurred in 2025 during the Wimbledon tournament, where she emerged from qualifying, defeating her friend and occasional doubles partner Andreescu along the way.
In additional second-round qualifying matches on Wednesday, veteran player Rebecca Marino from Vancouver succumbed to a 6-2, 6-4 loss against Russia’s Elena Pridankina. In men’s second-round qualifying encounters, Alexis Galarneau from Levis, Quebec, fell short with a 7-6 (3), 6-2 defeat to Dalibor Svrcina of Czechia. Later in the day, Liam Draxl from Newmarket, Ontario, faced off against American player Andrew Johnson.