Bianca Andreescu, the champion of the 2019 women’s singles, along with fellow Canadian Carson Branstine, triumphed in their respective matches on Wednesday, securing their spots in the final qualifying round for the U.S. Open.
Andreescu, hailing from Mississauga, Ontario, achieved a commanding 6-0, 6-3 victory against Ukraine’s Veronika Podrez during the second round of the women’s singles qualifying event.
The 26-year-old Canadian managed to break her opponent five times out of 12 opportunities, setting up a match on Thursday against either Tamara Zidansek from Slovenia or Guiomar Maristany from Spain.
Branstine also had a successful outing, winning 6-4, 7-5 against Czechia’s Linda Fruhvirtova.
The 25-year-old, who holds dual citizenship and was born in California but competes for her mother’s home country, capitalized on all five of her break-point opportunities and recorded 22 winners compared to Fruhvirtova’s eight.
Branstine is set to face Robin Montgomery from the United States on Thursday for a chance at one of the remaining main-draw positions available.
Andreescu made history at the 2019 U.S. Open by becoming the first Canadian to ever win a singles Grand Slam, overcoming the legendary Serena Williams in the final.
She last competed in the tournament in 2024, where she was defeated by Maria Sakkari in the opening round.
Branstine, on the other hand, was eliminated in the first round of qualifying at last year’s U.S. Open. Earlier in 2025, she made her Grand Slam debut by advancing through qualifying at Wimbledon, where she notably defeated her friend and occasional doubles partner Andreescu.
In additional second-round qualifying action on Wednesday, Vancouver’s veteran player Rebecca Marino lost 6-2, 6-4 to Russia’s Elena Pridankina.
In the men’s second-round qualifying matches, Alexis Galarneau from Levis, Quebec, was defeated 7-6 (3), 6-2 by Czechia’s Dalibor Svrcina. Meanwhile, Liam Draxl from Newmarket, Ontario, faced American Andrew Johnson later in the day.