Andreescu defeats Rybakina in straight sets, advances to Italian Open fourth round

ROME - Canada's Bianca Andreescu is through to the fourth round of the Italian Open WTA 1000 tennis tournament after posting a 6-2, 6-4 victory over No. 11 seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan on Sunday.

Andreescu, a 24-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., converted three break points and saved five to win the third-round match in one hour 27 minutes.

The 2019 U.S. Open champion is back on the comeback trail after recently returning from nearly six months off the WTA Tour.

Currently ranked 121st, Andreescu earned her first win against a top-20 opponent since 2023 on Friday with a 6-1, 3-6, 6-2 victory against Donna Vekic of Croatia in the second round.

Rybakina hadn't dropped a set in three previous meetings with Andreescu, including a win in the second round of the Madrid Open last month. 

Andreescu will play No. 8 Qinwen Zheng in the next round. Zheng won Olympic gold at the 2024 Summer Games in Paris.

Elsewhere on Sunday, No. 24 seed Leylah Fernandez of Laval, Que., lost her third-round match 6-4, 6-2 to Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine.

Kostyuk hit five aces and converted four break points, compared to one for Fernandez, en route to victory.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 11, 2025.