Canadian veteran Rebecca Marino progressed towards securing a spot in the U.S. Open women’s singles main draw by defeating France’s Fiona Fero 6-1, 6-4 in the first round of qualifying matches on Monday. The 35-year-old Vancouver native showcased a strong performance with eight aces and successfully breaking Fero four times out of six opportunities.
Having successfully navigated through qualifying rounds last year, Marino aims to replicate her achievement at the upcoming Grand Slam event after losing in the first round to Leylah Fernandez, another Canadian player. Her next challenge awaits against Russia’s Elena Pridankina in the three-round qualifying tournament.
Joining Marino’s advancement, fellow Canadian Carson Branstine secured a victory with a 6-2, 7-6 (3) win against Clervie Ngounoue from the United States. Branstine’s next opponent is set to be Linda Fruhvirtova from Czechia. Conversely, Kayla Cross from London, Ont., faced a 6-1, 6-1 defeat against Robin Montgomery of the U.S.
Meanwhile, Bianca Andreescu, the 2019 U.S. Open champion from Mississauga, Ont., was scheduled to play against Eva Vedder from the Netherlands later on Monday.
In the men’s category, Alexis Galarneau from Levis, Que., advanced to the second qualifying round following a 7-6 (4), 6-3 victory over Keegan Smith of the United States. Galarneau’s next match will be against Dalibor Svrcina from Czechia.
Shifting focus to mixed doubles, the second-seeded team composed of Ottawa’s Gabriela Dabrowski and Finland’s Harri Heliovaara suffered an upset with a 2-4, 4-1, 10-8 loss to the duo of Kristina Mladenovic from France and Marcelo Arevalo from El Salvador in the opening round of qualifying matches.
Gabriela Dabrowski is also anticipated to compete in the women’s doubles event at the U.S. Open. She clinched the title in last year’s tournament alongside her former partner Erin Routliffe, marking their second U.S. Open championship victory in three years.