Andreescu off to winning start

TORONTO — Bianca Andreescu feels as though she has found her fighting spirit after a tough, but thrilling 2 1/2 hour two-set victory on Tuesday.

The Mississauga, Ont., native defeated world No. 9 Daria Kasatkina 7-6 (5), 6-4 in her opening round match at the National Bank Open.

“A win is a win no matter how you pull it off and today really showed me a lot about myself and how I can push through these things if I really want it,” Andreescu said.

“It just shows that fighting spirit that I still have in me. I want to continue building on that.”

The win didn’t come without difficulty though.

On a number of occasions, Andreescu was in discussion with her trainers and seemed to be breathing heavy at different points of the match.

But the 22-year-old insisted she felt much better post-match.

“I’m feeling much better. I felt really dizzy, I had no idea what it was,” she said. “Maybe something that I ate or all the stress leading up to the tournament, I have no idea. I’m super happy that I was able to clutch it out.”

Asked if she thought of retiring from the match, Andreescu was adamant about not wanting to.

“I did not want to at all. There was one moment where I was a bit afraid that I couldn’t [continue] but it’s not like I had that thought in my head where I wanted to quit. I really couldn’t today, something came upon me even though I was feeling like absolute crap,” she said.

“Especially during the tiebreaker, I hit a shot and I was seeing double almost. That was kind of the point where I didn’t feel the best. But the crowd … they really pushed me to continue.”

Andreescu, who won the event in 2019 in Toronto, was sharp and active early, making comebacks within games she later won. She also went 3-for-3 on break points through the first five games.

Up 3-2, she mixed up her shots, using forehands, backhands and drop shots, making Kasatkina work. A Kasatkina error allowed Andreescu to have some breathing room with a 4-2 lead.

“Changing it up with my drop shot — I feel like I brought it out more today than [these] past four months,” Andreescu said. “I’m very happy with that.”

Andreescu will play against Alize Cornet of France in the second round.