"Without Billie Jean King and Serena Williams, I would not be here": Bianca Andreescu lauds inspiration on National Girls and Women in Sports Day

Canada’s tennis star Bianca Andreescu has named two great women players who were her motivation to play the sport.

The 23-year-old was once marked as one of the most highly-rated players in the women’s singles category but in the recent past has struggled to produce good results consistently.

Andreescu was recently quoted in a report where she named the former world number one Serena Williams and legendary Billie Jean King as the players who motivated her to play the sport at the highest level.

"Happy National Girls and Women in Sports Day," she said in a post on social media platform Instagram. "I'm so grateful for the girls and women in sports who have helped shape my career, like Billie Jean King and Serena Williams. Without them, I would not be here today.

"And for the next generation of amazing women in sports who are raising the bar like Eileen Gu and Coco Gauff, it is so amazing to see.”

Andreescu broke onto the scene in 2019 when she lifted the US Open at the age of just 19 after defeating Serena in the final with a score of 6-3, 7-5. However, since then, the Mississauga-born has never managed to play in the quarterfinal or beyond in any of the Grand Slams.