At the Australian Open, Bianca Andreescu Is Ousted in the Second Round

But coming to Australia, Andreescu had not played a match since October 2019. The inactivity would leave most players with little more than a puncher’s chance for success. Andreescu, though, had shown a freakish ability to shake off rust and play deep into tournaments. A back injury kept her out of competition for two months in the fall of 2018. When she came back she won two titles on the lower-tier I.T.F. circuit.

In 2019, an injury to her right shoulder largely sidelined her from April until August. She returned for the Rogers Cup in Toronto, one of the highest profile tournaments outside of the four majors, and won after Serena Williams retired from the final with back spasms four games into the match. Then Andreescu reeled off another seven consecutive wins and became the U.S. Open champion.

That is not normal. Angelique Kerber of Germany, the three-time Grand Slam winner, said that when injuries cause long layoffs, it can take months to find the motivation to get on court and go to your limit. “I think that’s the hardest challenge,” Kerber said.

Andreescu can burn hot. She breaks rackets sometimes in practice, though fewer than she used to. She said she cried Sunday night in anticipation of her first-round match here in Australia.

The first 48 hours after she learned that her coach, Sylvain Bruneau, had tested positive were tough to grapple with. As she and others on her team continued to test negative, Andreescu snapped back into preparation mode.

She did strength and fitness sessions on the stationary bicycle in her room with her trainer over Zoom. Her coach, who has remained healthy, put her through shadow hitting sessions, allowing her to work on her footwork. A devotee of visual imagery training, she spent hours imagining herself playing matches.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/09/sports/tennis/bianca-andreescu-australian-open-2021.html