Andreescu falls to Pegula; eliminated from Madrid Open

MADRID — Canada's Bianca Andreescu was eliminated from the Round of 16 at the Madrid Open following a 7-5, 6-1 loss to American Jessica Pegula on Tuesday.

Pegula, the tournament's 12th seed, had Andreescu on her heels for most of the match, winning 57.1 per cent of the total serve points available to her.

Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion, fought off 14 of 17 break points in the opening set, before being broken three times on four attempts in the decisive second set.

Pegula advances to the quarterfinal against Spain's Sara Sorribes Tormo, who defeated Daria Kasatkina 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 to reach her third WTA 1000 quarterfinal.

Andreescu entered the clay-court tournament with a world ranking of 111.

She reached a career-high ranking of No. 4 in October 2019 thanks to her breakout season that saw her win prestigious events in Toronto and Indian Wells, Calif., in addition to her first Grand Slam at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 3, 2022.