Bianca Andreescu outlasts Sorribes Tormo for Miami Open semifinal

Sitting in for a late-night virtual press conference, the sharp focus that had helped Bianca Andreescu survive one of the most physical matches of the Miami Open was starting to fail her.

“Yeah…” she trails off after fielding a two-part question. “What was the first part?”

The clichés about leaving it all on the court exist for a reason, and the 2019 US Open champion had clearly done just that to outlast Sara Sorribes Tormo, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3.

“The main thing today was fighting harder than her,” she explained after the two hour, 35-minute slugfest. “I say that a lot, but I know that she is an incredible fighter, so that was the main goal and I did that.”

Andreescu is playing only her third tournament after injuries and global pandemic conspired to keep her away from tennis for all of 2020. Despite the 15-month absence, the 20-year-old is into her second semifinal after Wednesday night’s battle—one that left her doubled over at the net but still able to share a smile with her otherwise unflappable opponent.

“She plays very different than most of the players on tour. She's difficult to play because of that. You don't always get the same rhythm. She gets to a lot of balls.

“That's what I told her at the net. I was, like, ‘Girl, you can run. You're crazy!’”

Champion in Guadalajara, Sorribes Tormo is one of the tour’s fastest-rising talents, one who employed a mix of heavy spin and relentless athleticism to already outfox three seeds en route to the biggest quarterfinal of her career—upsetting Australian Open runner-up Jennifer Brady, Elena Rybakina, and Ons Jabeur, all in three sets.

“She doesn't give you pace at all. With those high, heavy balls, you really have to generate your own pace. That consists of a lot of leg power, arm power, you're putting your all into it, because if you just give, like, a ball with nothing on it, she's going to take advantage of that.”

Andreescu was coming off the biggest win of her comeback, a come-from-behind victory over former world No. 1 Garbiñe Muguruza, and though decidedly out of sorts to kick off her quarterfinal, she was happy to report the groin injury suffered earlier in the event against Amanda Anisimova had largely faded.

“I played a lot of matches, but I'm going to get the right treatment, gonna get some good sleeps in. There is no pain anywhere, so I'm feeling good.”

Sorribes Tormo thrived as the Canadian fought to find her range, racing ahead by a double break and saved a break point on her own serve to edge ahead 4-2.

Andreescu soon adjusted to the Spaniard’s unorthodox weight of shot and surged through the next four games, putting away a forehand at the net to clinch the opening set at her first opportunity.

The second set saw just one service hold as both women traded breaks back and forth through seven straight games. Sorribes Tormo brought the ball to impeccable heights and Andreescu struggled to neutralize, relying her own variety to bring rallies back on her terms.

“It's always you having to generate your own pace. That was for sure tiring towards like the end of the second set, like, I'm sure many people could see that. Trying my best not to show it, but sometimes it's really hard, especially in these conditions.”

Frustrations boiled over for Andreescu when Sorribes Tormo was first to hold, and a backhand into the net leveled the match at one set apiece.

“I'm not gonna lie: I was super jealous because she was never going to her towel, and she was never really sweating. Then you see me, like, I wish I could go every point to my towel but I can't. I'm trying to save energy.”

The fifth game of the decider proved pivotal; after two missed break point opportunities, the No. 8 seed overpowered the Spaniard off the backhand side, drawing a rare mistake to take the initiative.

“The match was just super up and down, like at one point she was on fire, and then I was on fire, and it just kept going like that. It could have been either one of our matches.”

Consolidating after another marathon game, the Canadian shrugged off a late break and obvious exhaustion as she served for the match, and remained keenly attuned to her opportunities as she smacked a forehand return to pull up match point.

What followed was a microcosm of the match itself: one last long rally, but this time, Andreescu camped in the middle of the court, running Sorribes Tormo side to side—having conquered the opposition’s attempts at defense—before putting away her 42nd winner to complete Miami’s semifinal line-up.

“For me it shows that I can get through those tough moments. Today my body was giving out, and then my mind gave out at one point because I was just thinking about how tired I was, and then it's just like, ‘How do I regroup?’ That's kind of what happened the last couple of matches, too, super long three-setters.”

No break likely awaits her in the last four as she’ll face No. 23 seed Maria Sakkari, a 25-year-old with a branded reputation for fitness and stamina, who snapped Naomi Osaka’s 23-match winning streak earlier in the afternoon.

“She's coming off a great win,” Andreescu said. “I mean, I'm coming off a pretty great win too, but I'm sure she's very confident, and I have watched her play many, many times so I kind of know what to expect, but obviously it's different once I step out there.

“I'm just gonna have to adjust with what I know now and what I am going to see on the court. But I know it's going to be a battle, and I'm really looking forward to it.”

By the end of the press conference, her adrenaline appeared to have returned, with the relief of victory behind her and a new challenge coming ahead—nothing new for the indomitable Andreescu.

“What can you expect from me? So I have been through it, and I know how to deal with that kind of adversity.”