It looks like Canada has another teenage tennis phenom.
In 2017, it was 18-year-old Denis Shapovalov who had a coming out party on the world stage, knocking off Rafael Nadal at the Rogers Cup en route to the semifinals.
Now, it’s 18-year-old Bianca Andreescu who has put the tennis world on notice, winning the BNP Paribas Open title in Palm Springs over the weekend.
Champion
18-year-old Canadian wild card Bianca Andreescu capped a dream fortnight with a gripping 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 win over reigning Wimbledon champion Angelique Kerber clinching her first-ever WTA singles title at the #BNPParibas Open on Sunday. #BNPPO19
pic.twitter.com/5PkSiTvEGr— Niande News (@NiandeN) March 17, 2019
Andreescu is the youngest player to win the tournament since Serena Williams two decades ago and is the first Canadian to win a WTA Premier Mandatory championship.
The Canadian teenager beat former world number one and three-time Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber in Sunday’s final.
“Hopefully this moment can be a great inspiration for young athletes because, like I always say, if you believe in yourself anything is possible,” Andreescu said on court after her monumental victory.
“And like my mum always told me throughout the years ‘if you work hard, you dream big to get big, then you can accomplish so many things’ and that’s what I’ve been doing throughout many years and now this moment has become a reality so it’s really, really crazy.”
Andreescu was a wild card qualifier for the BNP Paribas Open, but that’s something she won’t have to worry about for the time being.
The win jumped her all the way up to number 24 in the world rankings, which means she’ll be seeded for all the big WTA tournaments, including the Grand Slams.
She also earned quite the pay day for her work, bringing home more than $1.3-million USD in winnings.
