Tennis Canada

– No. 3 seed Bianca Andreescu fell in Friday’s quarter-finals
– No. 2 seed and former world No. 7 Patty Schnyder advances to final four
– Semifinals to be played Saturday at Toronto’s Aviva Centre; Admission is free

Toronto, November 3, 2017 – The lone Canadian remaining in the draw at the $60,000 Tevlin Challenger was eliminated on Friday, as Bianca Andreescu fell to Ysaline Bonaventure 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in the quarter-finals at Aviva Centre in Toronto.

The 17-year-old put up a tough fight against eighth-seed Bonaventure, managing to force the two hour and 12-minute contest to a deciding third set. However, despite a cheering section from her hometown crowd, Andreescu was unable to advance.

“I knew from the beginning that it was what I had to expect,” said Bonaventure of her local opponent’s sideline support. “I knew they weren’t going to be cheering for me, of course, so I had to stay focused. I had a tough moment in the second but managed to focus again in the third and it worked pretty well. It feels good after being injured for eight months. Last year I had three surgeries, so it feels good to be playing at the level I was at before.”

The 23-year-old from Belgium, who was sidelined with a wirst injury meets Jessika Ponchet in the semifinals. Earlier on Friday, the unseeded Frenchwoman registered a straightforward quarter-final win over Michaela Honcova of Slovakia 6-1, 6-3. The two will face off Saturday for a place in the final.  

On the other side of the draw, No. 2 seed Patty Schnyder advanced with a 6-2, 6-4 victory. Schnyder completed the win against Russian qualifier Elena Bovina in 64 minutes.

“The first set was the best set I’ve played so far,” said Schnyder following the match. “You just have to stay so focused the whole time and never give your opponent the slightest chance because everyone is aggressive here and just waiting for any opportunity.”

Schnyder, who reached as high as No. 7 in the world rankings in 2005, returned from retirement in 2015. The current world No. 160 has played the majority of her tournaments on the ITF Pro Circuit this season, and the 38-year-old often is accompanied on the road by her young daughter.  

“There are very few weeks that I travel alone,” she said of having her family join her on tour. “It fits very well, and she’s done great so far with all the travelling and coming along to hotels and tournaments. So far I’m enjoying it so much, especially being back in competition at one of the highest levels.”

Schnyder will face off against Francesca Di Lorenzo of the United States on Saturday. Di Lorenzo reached the semifinals after her opponent, Belgian qualifier Tamaryn Hendler, was forced to retire due to illness down 4-0 in the first set.

The stage has also been set for Saturday’s doubles final. Erin Routliffe of New Zealand and Chile’s Alexa Guarachi will take on Belgium’s Bonaventure and Victoria Rodriguez of Mexico in the championship match.

The $60,000 Tevlin Challenger, part of the ITF Pro Circuit, runs through November 5 at Aviva Centre in Toronto. Former champions include Canadians Eugenie Bouchard, Aleksandra Wozniak, and Gabriela Dabrowski, as well as 2013 Wimbledon runner-up Sabine Lisicki of Germany. For full draws, complete scores, and order of play, please click here.

About Tennis Canada
Founded in 1890, Tennis Canada is a non-profit, national sport association with a mission to lead the growth of tennis in Canada and a vision to become a world-leading tennis nation. We value teamwork, passion, integrity, innovation and excellence. Tennis Canada owns and operates the premier Rogers Cup presented by National Bank WTA and ATP World Tour events, 8 professional ITF- sanctioned events and financially supports 15 other professional tournaments in Canada. Tennis Canada operates national junior training centres/programs in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Tennis Canada is a proud member of the International Tennis Federation, the Canadian Olympic Committee, the Canadian Paralympic Committee and the International Wheelchair Tennis Association, and serves to administer, sponsor and select the teams for Davis Cup, Fed Cup, the Olympic and Paralympic Games and all wheelchair, junior and senior national teams. Tennis Canada invests its surplus into tennis development. For more information on Tennis Canada, please visit our website at www.tenniscanada.com and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

Media Contacts

Toronto:
Nicole Watts
Manager, Communications and Media Relations
nwatts@tenniscanada.com or 416-665-9777 ext. 4092
Caroline Anderson
Coordinator, Communications and Media Relations
canderson@tenniscanada.com or 416-665-9777 ext. 4545