Andreescu battles back to see off
Mertens in New York
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[September 05, 2019]
By Rory Carroll
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Canadian teenager
Bianca Andreescu came from behind to overpower Elise Mertens 3-6 6-2
6-3 and reach her first Grand Slam semi-final at the U.S. Open on
Wednesday.
After a flawless first set from Mertens the tide turned in
Andreescu's favor in the second when she fired a cross-court
forehand winner to break the Belgian at love and take a 4-2 lead.
She fired another winner, her 40th, up the line to seal the win on a
hot and humid night under the lights at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
"This is honestly so crazy," an emotional Andreescu said in an
on-court interview. "A year ago I was in the qualifying round, I
remember I was suffering from a back injury.
"Now what I've accomplished this year, I'm honestly speechless,"
said Andreescu, who will make her top 10 debut on Monday after
ending last year ranked 178th.
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"I need someone to pinch me right now. Is this real life?"
Andreescu will next face fellow first-time semi-finalist Belinda
Bencic on Thursday after the Swiss advanced in straight sets earlier
in the day.
The two have never played each other before.
The quarter-final offered a fascinating contrast in styles between
the explosive power of the Canadian teenager and the steady
counterpunching of the 23-year-old Mertens.
But once the 15th-seeded Andreescu found the range with her
punishing groundstrokes, she was able to wear down the 25th-seed and
pile up the winners.
"She can do well in the big moments," Mertens said. "She gets that
one more strike. She's a very powerful hitter but also a good
mover."
The victory continues a strong-run for the 19-year-old, who clinched
titles at Indian Wells in March and last month's Canadian Open.
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![](../images/090519pics/sports51.jpg)
Bianca Andreescu of Canada after beating Elise Mertens of Belgium in
a quarterfinal match on day ten of the 2019 U.S. Open tennis
tournament at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports
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MENTAL EDGE
Andreescu uses meditation and visualization to keep her mind sharp
and said the techniques she learned as a child help her deal with
the pressure of the moment.
"I think if you can control your mind, then you can control a lot of
things," she told reporters.
"I think that's what's been working really well for me. I just kept
doing that. When I'm on the court in front of these big stages, I'm
really good at just blocking everything and staying in the zone."
And in a warning sign for her competition, Andreescu said she still
has room to improve at the tournament.
"I'm going to be honest. I don't think I've played my best tennis,"
she said.
"I just fought really well with what I had every single day. I think
that's the most important thing for me, and I'm sure for every
athlete you're not going to have good days every day.
"So I just try my best to figure out what's going well and what's
not and just go from there."
(Reporting by Rory Carroll; Editing by Greg Stutchbury and Sudipto
Ganguly)
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