Canadian veteran Rebecca Marino advanced to the next round of U.S. Open women’s singles qualifying by defeating France’s Fiona Fero 6-1, 6-4 on Monday. With eight aces and breaking Fero four times, Marino showcased a strong performance. Last year, she made it through the qualifying rounds but lost in the first round to Leylah Fernandez. Marino’s next opponent will be Russia’s Elena Pridankina.
Meanwhile, Carson Branstine, another Canadian player, secured a spot in the next round after beating Clervie Ngounoue from the United States 6-2, 7-6 (3). Branstine is set to face Linda Fruhvirtova from Czechia in the upcoming match. On the other hand, Kayla Cross from London, Ont., faced a defeat against Robin Montgomery from the U.S. with a score of 6-1, 6-1.
Former U.S. Open champion Bianca Andreescu from Mississauga, Ont., was scheduled to play against Eva Vedder from the Netherlands later in the day.
In the men’s category, Alexis Galarneau from Levis, Que., progressed to the next qualifying round by defeating Keegan Smith from the United States with a score of 7-6 (4), 6-3. Galarneau’s next opponent will be Dalibor Svrcina from Czechia.
Additionally, in the opening round of mixed doubles qualifying, the second-seeded team comprising Gabriela Dabrowski from Ottawa and Harri Heliovaara from Finland suffered an upset against Kristina Mladenovic from France and Marcelo Arevalo from El Salvador with a score of 2-4, 4-1, 10-8.
Gabriela Dabrowski is also expected to participate in the women’s doubles event at the U.S. Open. She clinched the title last year alongside her former partner Erin Routliffe, marking their second U.S. Open championship in three years.