Andreescu has only lost three times this year and has seen her world ranking rise to No. 24GETTY MAGES
Tennis player Bianca Andreescu "exploded into prominence" by claiming the BNP Paribas Open yesterday at Indian Wells and is poised to be "welcomed new blood for tennis," according to Bill Dwyre of the L.A. TIMES. The 18-year-old Andreescu claimed her first WTA title by upsetting Angelique Kerber in yesterday's final, and the sport of tennis "loves it more when it gets a new positive, a winning fresh face with an infectious smile and a loudly spoken commitment to give the fans and TV viewers a never-say-die style of play." It also "helps when that new blood is delightfully honest" (L.A. TIMES, 3/18). TENNIS.com's Steve Tignor wrote Andreescu's trophy-ceremony speech after the final was "characteristically pitch-perfect in its ingenuous enthusiasm." With her "wide-ranging game and mature-beyond-her-years attitude, Andreescu defies all categories except one: she’s a natural" (TENNIS.com, 3/17).
TEENAGE DREAM: SI.com's Tristan Jung noted Andreescu is the "latest teenage phenomenon" in tennis after arriving at Indian Wells as an "unseeded wild card ranked 60th in the world." She has lost just three times this year and is now ranked No. 24 in the world after starting the year at No. 152. This is a "truly meteoric rise." The WTA has been "very unpredictable in recent years," as "inconsistency at the top of the game has allowed a deep pool of talented young players to rise" (SI.com, 3/17). In N.Y., Christopher Clarey notes women’s tennis has had a "number of breakthrough performances of late, including Naomi Osaka’s run to the title at Indian Wells a year ago as an unseeded player, when she was 20" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/18). In London, Charlie Eccleshare notes Andreescu's "quick-fire ascent adds to the intrigue around women's tennis, which looks poised to enter a golden age" (London TELEGRAPH, 3/18).
STOCK RISING? In New Zealand, David Long writes Andreescu is a player "every tournament director now wants," and the ASB Classic's Karl Budge is "no different." Andreescu reached her first WTA final at the event in Auckland this January. Budge, speculating on her return next year, said, "Obviously, she's the talk of the tennis world at the moment, there is a lot of momentum behind her, so we've got to be careful not to be buying at the peak of the market, so to speak." Long notes any appearance fee to get Andreescu "will sky rocket after her success at Indian Wells" (STUFF.co.nz, 3/18).
