Bianca Andreescu ready to start 2022 season, takes wildcard into upcoming clay event

Former world No. 4 Bianca Andreescu is ready to return to action as she has accepted a wildcard into Stuttgart, the tournament announced on Thursday. 

Andreescu, now ranked at No. 119 in the world, has no previous appearances in Stuttgart as she is set to make her debut on the clay courts of Stuttgart. 

After the 2021 season ended, Andreescu opened up in a social media post, saying the past two years had been extremely difficult for her. 

Also, Andreescu pulled out of the Australian Open as she wanted to give herself time to heal before returning to the court. 

“A lot of days, I did not feel like myself, especially while I was training and/or playing matches. I felt like I was carrying the world on my shoulders. I could not detach myself from everything that was going on and off the court; was feeling the collective sadness and turmoil around and it took its toll on me,” Andreescu explained in a Twitter post.

Andreescu ‘rediscovered herself’ after a trip to Costa Rica

In February, Andreescu attended the Wisdom and Well-being program in Costa Rica.

“Wow. My time @bluespiritcostarica during the Wisdom and Well-being Program was unforgettable!! I went there to rediscover myself and have some alone time but it turned out to be so much more… I met many incredible people, experienced new things, the speakers/ teachers down there taught me so much, and most importantly I had lots of fun. Can’t wait to come back!” Andreescu captioned her Instagram post from February.

Andreescu made a solid start to the 2021 season as she reached the semifinal at the Philipp Island Trophy in Melbourne and also made the final at the Miami Masters. 

After Miami, Andreescu’s game and results went downhill as she didn’t have any notable results in the rest of the season. 

The Stuttgart event kicks off on April 18 and it remains to be seen how will Andreescu play in her first tournament of the season.