After missing the 2020 season due to injury, Bianca Andreescu will enter the 2021 season healthy and with a lot of expectation after a breakout 2019 season.
In a year, which has been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the WTA season has seen proof of how strong the depth is on the tour.
There have been two new grand slam champions crowned in Sofia Kenin and Iga Swiatek as well as the rejuvenation of Victoria Azarenka’s career as well as many other players making their mark on the tour.
However one player, we have not seen in 2020 is Bianca Andreescu with the 20 year-old Canadian taking the year to nurse her knee and foot injuries.
With the COVID-19 pandemic, Andreescu used the hiatus to continue her rehabilitation of her knee injury suffered at the 2019 WTA Finals. Just as it looked like Andreescu was ready to defend her US Open title a foot injury derailed her comeback.
However it looks the US Open champion looks to be ready for the 2021 season, “I’m doing really well,” Andreescu told Alize Lim in the latest episode of Major Talk.
“The virus kind of pushed me back, and some little personal things here and there, but right now I’m good, I’m training hard, I’m really looking forward to 2021.
“I’m perfectly healthy. I just really wanted to take time to build everything in my life and I think this time off really helped me do that.
“I wouldn’t say I am ready tomorrow to play a match because I am taking it step by step, but maybe in a couple of weeks I will be good. I don’t want to rush anything but I’m feeling good.”
Practicing at the Patrick Mouratoglou Academy and in Monaco, Bianca Andreescu looks to be fitter than before as she looks to return in Australia in 2021.
But the question now is how will Andreescu deal with the expectation that will be placed on her shoulders.
Having won three titles in 2019 including the US Open, Bianca Andreescu looked unstoppable when fully healthy. Her mentality, confidence and variety on the tennis court gives her all the tools to outsmart her opponents.
The only problem is that she isn’t the only player who has these attributes on the WTA Tour with the likes of Sofia Kenin and Iga Swiatek now proving that they can perform with conviction on the biggest stages.
It is now a stronger WTA Tour that Andreescu has to battle against in a bid to prove that she is the strongest player of the current generation. Her and Naomi Osaka are being looked at to win 5-10 grand slams, the pressure is now on to deliver when it matters.
We will find out in 2021, whether Andreescu can mentally and physically deal with being a consistent world class player. The Canadian will play the Australian Open, which starts on the 18th of January.
