Defeat in Weston, but signs of revival: Bianca Andreescu’s ITF streak ends after eight straight wins

This Saturday, the winning streak that Bianca Andreescu had been carrying in ITF tournaments came to an end, after being defeated in the semifinals of the W35 Weston on clay courts by world No. 337 Akasha Urhobo.

The Canadian was coming off winning the title last week at the W35 Bradenton – her first individual trophy since the 2019 US Open title. This time, in a reality far removed from the spotlight of the top level of the tennis world, Andreescu put together another strong campaign in W35 tournaments, but after eight consecutive wins she was finally defeated in three sets.

The former world No. 4 was unable this year to enter the Australian Open, where she did not reach a spot in the main draw, nor did she receive a wildcard. Although she had the possibility of playing qualifying, Andreescu chose to stay in North America and compete in ITF tournaments that would allow her to gain confidence at the start of the year, especially after several more months away from the court in 2025 due to physical problems.

Andreescu – currently world No. 228 – entered the tournament as the second seed, and defeated along the way Sofia Johnson, Sofia Cabezas and Lia Karatancheva (7th), returning to the semifinals in consecutive weeks. However, Andreescu was unable to take advantage of having a set lead and ended up giving way to the 19-year-old Urhobo.

Andreescu arrived with an 8–0 record in ITF tournaments since her return, but she finally ran into an obstacle she could not overcome. This week she was competing on clay courts for the first time since the qualifiers of Roland Garros 2025. Things had started well for Andreescu, who survived a battle of breaks in the first set: two breaks in favour of Urhobo and three in favour of Andreescu, who ended up securing the set on her fifth set point after 46 minutes of play.

However, with the start of the second set, little of that momentum remained. Andreescu’s level dropped. After taking a 2–1 lead, Urhobo responded by turning things around and won five games in a row – taking two breaks in four opportunities – and claimed the second set by an emphatic 6–2.

In the third set, things would not change much. The American managed as many as three consecutive breaks on Andreescu’s serve and surged ahead to a comfortable 5–1 lead. Although the Canadian managed to recover one final service game in her favour, Urhobo closed out the win by 4–6, 6–2, 6–2 and denied Andreescu a second consecutive final.

It was the second consecutive week of competition for Andreescu, who a week earlier had been in Bradenton lifting an unprecedented W35 trophy. The 25-year-old player recorded five consecutive wins – all against opponents ranked outside the top 300 – and conceded only one set throughout the tournament.

With another three wins achieved this week – before the loss to Urhobo – Andreescu continues to build confidence and secured several more points for the WTA ranking. The Canadian will climb more than 30 positions in the ranking in the next update and will stand as world No. 190 – rapidly returning to the top 200.

In the coming weeks there are still challenges ahead for the 25-year-old Canadian, who is entered in the W75 Vero Beach Open – as the sixth seed – and the W50 Orlando Open, where she is the seventh seed. Andreescu chose to skip the Middle East swing in February and will remain in North America, where she will play the WTA 125 Midland, which will be her biggest challenge of the season so far, and probably her last commitment in lower-level tournaments before seeking a return at the Sunshine Doubles in Indian Wells or the Miami Open.