The 2019 Rogers Cup final lasted only 19 minutes, as three-time Toronto champion Serena Williams retired at 3-1 down, citing an upper back injury, handing the Premier 5 title to home star Bianca Andreescu.
Holding back tears after the 96th final in her career, the 37-year-old Serena said:
I’m sorry I can’t do it today, I tried but I just couldn’t do it. Thank you Jehovah for letting me come out here. Bianca you’re a great sportswoman. Thanks to my team. It’s been a tough year, but we’ll keep going.
“I’m sorry…I tried.”
You’re a ????, @serenawilliams .#RC19 pic.twitter.com/KeBOiYa48g
— WTA (@WTA) August 11, 2019
Playing her first full tournament since Miami, Andreescu’s incredible week started with a rare all-Canadian match against Eugenie Bouchard on home soil and later on included three Top 10 wins (against world No.5 Kiki Bertens, No.3 Karolina Pliskova and No.10 Serena Williams), on top of victories over Daria Kasatkina and Sofia Kenin.
The 19-year-old Canadian of Romanian heritage ended the previous season ranked 198th, while now she’s set to debut in the Top 20, rising from No.22 to No.14. Andreescu will be the highest-ranked teenager on the WTA tour, overtaking American Amanda Anisimova. Serena, on the other hand, will climb to No.8, her highest ranking since returning to competitive tennis last March.
Andreescu’s winning Toronto apparel: the Nike Fall Court Tank, Nike Fall Straight Skirt, and animal-print Nike Air Zoom Zero shoes.
Only 19 minutes of play! Oh, my! Nevertheless, congrats to Bianca and get well to Serena.
The Real Deal, luckily, the injury doesn’t seem to be serious. Serena said that she would’ve been able to play had she had more than a day to rest and recover after her semifinal.