Canada's Fernandez, Andreescu and Marino exit National Bank Open in Montreal

CTV News

4 days ago

Bianca Andreescu, of Canada, holds her ankle following a fall during her first round match against Barbora Krejcikova, of the Czech Republic, at the National Bank Open tennis tournament in Montreal, Sunday, July 27, 2025.
MONTREAL — Leylah Fernandez, Bianca Andreescu and Rebecca Marino are all out of the National Bank Open.
Fernandez, of Laval, Que., lost 6-4, 6-1 to Australia's Maya Joint in the first round on Tuesday, not long after Andreescu withdrew from the tournament with a left ankle injury.
Earlier, Vancouver's Rebecca Marino fell 6-1, 6-2 to eighth seed Emma Navarro of the United States in second-round action.
The 22-year-old Fernandez -- the top-ranked Canadian at No. 24 in the world -- was coming off winning her fourth WTA title at the D.C. Open on Sunday.
Showing fatigue, Fernandez gave up six break points and won only 49 per cent of her points on first serve. The 19-year-old Joint won 62 of 109 points to win the match in 74 minutes.
Andreescu sustained her injury on match point Sunday night versus Barbora Krejcikova, but pulled out the first-round win 6-3, 6-4.
The 25-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., said she tore some ligaments in her ankle but wouldn't rule out a return to the court at the Cincinnati Open, which begins in just over a week.
'The ligaments are a little bit torn, so that takes time, so it's kind of a day-to-day thing,' she said, adding her ankle was not previously bothering her.
'We can't really explain it. Maybe it was emotions, maybe I was a little bit tired. I just stepped in a weird way. We're kind of just saying it was a freak accident.'
Rebecca Marino, of Canada, keeps her eyes on the ball during her first round match against Elsa Jacquemot, of France, at the National Bank Open tennis tournament in Montreal, Sunday, July 27, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes
Rebecca Marino, of Canada, keeps her eyes on the ball during her first round match against Elsa Jacquemot, of France, at the National Bank Open tennis tournament in Montreal, Sunday, July 27, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes
Andreescu was supposed to play No. 4 seed Mirra Andreeva of Russia in the second round at the National Bank Open on Tuesday afternoon.
The former world No. 4, who won the Canadian Open and the U.S. Open in 2019, has repeatedly spent time off the court over the years to nurse back, shoulder, knee, ankle and foot injuries.
'All I could think about is honestly, like why?' she said. 'I even screamed out like, why does this keep happening to me? Just a bunch of emotions. I was super overwhelmed, playing in front of a home crowd, winning the match, right?
'I started laughing at one point because honestly at this point it's laughable. It's just crazy, it's crazy. I'm trying to stay positive but it's getting really tough.'
The 34-year-old Marino never broke Navarro, failing to convert three opportunities. She also won just 59 per cent of her first-service points and 23 per cent on her second serve.
Navarro put 74 per cent of her first serves in play and won 82 per cent of those points. The 24-year-old broke Marino four times as the match lasted 63 minutes.
Marino, ranked 123rd, beat French qualifier Elsa Jacquemot 7-6 (2), 6-1 in the first round.
In the evening session, No. 1 seed Coco Gauff opened her tournament with a second-round meeting against fellow American Danielle Collins. Toronto's Victoria Mboko took on No. 23 seed Sofia Kenin of the United States in the late match.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 29, 2025.
Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press