Adelaide | Andreescu stages impressive come-back win over Muguruza

The WTA 500 Adelaide International 1 kicked off on Sunday at Memorial Drive with a 1st-round popcorn match between Bianca Andreescu, the 2019 US Open champion, and two-time Grand Slam champion  Garbiñe Muguruza from Spain, that saw a remarkable come-back win by the Canadian, who came through, 0-6 7-6(3) 6-1.

I put more returns in the court, more serves in the court. I'm so glad I pulled that out. I have no idea how. Bianca Andreescu

It will be yet another lost opportunity for Muguruza, who is currently ranked 55 after a dip in form last season and who led 6-0, 5-2 but was unable to close out the match.

For Andreescu, it was 2 hours, 12 minutes well spent, as she improved her head-to-head record against former World No 1 to 3-0.

“In the second set I really had to change my game-plan,” Andreescu said. “I told myself to go for it [and] whatever happens, happens.

“I put more returns in the court, more serves in the court. I’m so glad I pulled that out. I have no idea how.”

Muguruza, who won the French Open in 2016 and Wimbledon a year later, looked to be in outstanding form in the first set, striking 8 clean winners to 2, and converting 3 of 5 break points while not facing a single break point herself.

Andreescu got on the board in the early stages of the second, but Muguruza fired a forehand winner to break for 4-2 before consolidating for 5-2.

She could not close out the victory, though, when serving for the match at 5-3, and Andreescu pulled things back on serve.

The Canadian took a crucial 4-2 lead in the tiebreak with a backhand down the line, and then powered her way past to close it out with an ace, despite having been two points away from defeat on multiple occasions.

Andreescu took charge in the third by forcing a long error with a solid service return to break for 3-1, and eased to her come-back win over demoralised Muguruza from there, setting up a 2nd-round contest against either No 4 seed Veronika Kudermetova from Russia or American Amanda Anisimova, who play on Monday.

Kaia Kanepi also dropped her opening set but found a way past Aliaksandra Sasnovich

In the only other main draw match to be played on Sunday as qualifying was completed, Estonian Kaia Kanepi also came through a tough battle beating Aliaksandra Sasnovich from Belarus, 4-6 6-1 6-4, in just over two hours.

Kanepi, a seven-time Grand Slam quarter-finalist, won 80 percent of her first-service points to seal her opening win and will now meet either No 8 seed Ekaterina Alexandrova from Russia, or Czech Marketa Vondrousova in the 2nd-round.

Other action on Monday includes 1st-round matches between reigning Wimbledon Champion Elena Rybakina from Kazakstan against 2022 Australian Open finalist Danielle Collins from the USA, and Russia’s Daria Kasatkina against the young rising Czech talent, Linda Noskova, who qualified on Sunday.