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Bianca Andreescu: How former US Open champion and world number four went to the bottom of the tour to rise back up

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3 months ago

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Andreescu was plagued with injuries – issues with her abdomen and ankle kept her away from the court, and her 2025 season was delayed by appendectomy surgery.

Her form suffered and she has failed to go beyond the fourth round at a Grand Slam since her US Open triumph, with her ranking tumbling from a high of world number four in 2019 to 228 earlier this year.

At the start of 2026 she decided to return to an environment where she hadn’t played since 2018, swapping life on the WTA Tour for that on the ITF.

The tournament rankings work from W15 – the lowest level – up to W100. Andreescu was competing in W35 and W75 editions, with the total prize pot for a W35 tournament about £26,000.

The make-up of the ITF tour tends to be youngsters who are trying to make their mark on the sport, women who were unable to break on to the WTA Tour or players who are using it to regain previous form.

The crowds might be tiny and line judges rare, but competition on the court is fierce.

“The hunger the women had that I was playing against, every match was so difficult, and I feel like maybe on the WTA Tour, the athletes are maybe a bit more comfortable with certain things,” Andreescu says.

“Certain things are getting paid for [on the WTA Tour]. But on that [ITF] level, nothing’s getting paid for, and you’re barely breaking even. I was there too at one point, so I know how it is.

“I don’t want people to get the idea that the ITF tour is Mickey Mouse compared to the WTA Tour, because that’s not the case.

“I feel a lot of admiration and respect for the women that continue to grind on the tour, because it’s not easy, even on the WTA Tour, it’s just not easy.”

Vemic, who joined Andreescu’s team in September 2025, echoed those thoughts.

“Every player there needs to prove themselves and everyone is hungry and they’re not bored of playing many years on tour,” he says.

“They’re all driven by their dreams and passion because a lot of them are younger athletes.

“So sometimes it’s a transitional part or stage of coming from juniors into professional waters and some of them carry a lot of confidence.”

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How to watch Reds vs. Nationals: TV channel and streaming options for August 8

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4 minutes ago

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August 9, 2026

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The Cincinnati Reds will look to Elly De La Cruz, on a two-game homer streak, against the Washington Nationals at 6:45 p.m. ET on Saturday, at Nationals Park. Chase Burns (13-1, 2.35 ERA) will start for the Reds, who are 56-59 this season and fourth in the NL Central. Andrew Alvarez (2-3, 3.94 ERA) is expected to start for the Nationals, who are 57-61 and fourth in the NL East.

How to watch Cincinnati Reds vs. Washington Nationals

Reds vs. Nationals odds

  • Favorite Moneyline: Reds -133
  • Underdog Moneyline: Nationals +110
  • Total: 8.5
  • Total Over Odds: -115
  • Total Under Odds: -105

Injury reports

Reds

Spencer Steer: 10 Day IL (Wrist), Hunter Greene: 15 Day IL (Elbow), Tony Santillan: 15 Day IL (Oblique), Nick Lodolo: 15 Day IL (Finger), Graham Ashcraft: 60 Day IL (Forearm), Brandon Williamson: 60 Day IL (Shoulder), Blake Dunn: 60 Day IL (Elbow)

Nationals

James Wood: 10 Day IL (Oblique), Drew Millas: 10 Day IL (Finger), Connelly Early: 15 Day IL (Elbow), Josiah Gray: 60 Day IL (Elbow), DJ Herz: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Ken Waldichuk: 60 Day IL (Forearm), Richard Lovelady: 60 Day IL (Tricep), Mitchell Parker: 60 Day IL (Elbow), PJ Poulin: 60 Day IL (Flexor)

Stats to know

  • Cincinnati’s Sal Stewart is slashing .255/.333/.479 this season with 25 home runs (12th in MLB), 86 RBIs (2nd in MLB) and an OPS of .813. He has a 22.1% strikeout rate and a 10.4% walk rate in 498 plate appearances, and he has scored 63 total runs. Stewart has recorded 12 steals on 16 attempts.
  • In 431 plate appearances, De La Cruz is hitting .277/.360/.509 with a .869 OPS and 21 steals on 27 attempts. He has hit 20 long balls, driven in 54 runs and scored 66 times.
  • Washington’s CJ Abrams is slashing .287/.361/.548 this season with 28 home runs (8th in MLB), 88 RBIs (1st in MLB) and an OPS of .908 (7th in MLB). He has a 22.7% strikeout rate and an 8.6% walk rate in 488 plate appearances, and he has scored 72 total runs. Abrams has recorded 21 steals on 26 attempts.
  • In 480 plate appearances, Daylen Lile has posted a 19% strikeout rate and a 5.8% walk rate while slashing .244/.296/.421 with 15 home runs, 59 RBIs and 59 runs scored. He has stolen 11 bases on 16 attempts.

This watch guide was created using technology provided by Data Skrive.

Betting/odds, ticketing and streaming links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.

Photo: Jamie Squire, Ishika Samant, Scott Taetsch, Alika Jenner / Getty Images

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Boston’s winning streak stops at 9 when another late Red Sox rally runs out of gas

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11 minutes ago

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August 9, 2026

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The (latest) Boston Red Sox winning streak stops at nine.

On Saturday, the Athletics played the spoiler at Fenway Park, raining on what has at times seemed like a summerlong parade in Boston. Their 7-3 win over the Red Sox denied Boston its second double-digit winning streak of the season.

The Red Sox tried to muster some late magic, which has become a bit of a hallmark of this wild, never-say-die Boston season. They put runners on second and third with two outs in the eighth, but the push ended when Jarren Duran struck out. Then, in the ninth, Boston strung together three hits and a walk, but Eli White lined out to center field to end the game.

“I think that’s our identity, I think that’s who we are as a team,” Jahmai Jones said, “is, you know, it’s the ninth inning. We’ve seen a lot of comebacks for us, we’ve seen a lot of late-inning rallies. We’re never going to give up until game’s over.”

Did interim manager Chad Tracy have hope? Yep, he sure did.

“It was a great effort to get the tying run to the plate and give ourselves a shot,” Tracy said afterward. “It was awesome. … That ball was smoked by Eli, and if you get another one on there you’ve got the winning run at the plate, so it was a good effort.”

Boston out jumped to an early 2-0 lead Saturday when Andruw Monasterio’s single in the first drove in Jones and Caleb Durbin. Left-hander Gage Jump kept the Red Sox at bay for the remainder of his six-inning, 11-strikeout effort.

The Red Sox had cruised to a 13-1 win on Friday night, rolling to that victory one night after rallying five times against the White Sox in a 13-inning marathon.

Even with Saturday’s loss, the Red Sox (64-52) have won 11 of their past 13. They are 32-6 since June 25 — a run that also included a franchise-record 15-game winning streak in July.

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How to watch Guardians vs. White Sox: TV channel and streaming options for August 8

Published

16 minutes ago

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August 9, 2026

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The Chicago White Sox carry a four-game losing streak into a contest versus the Cleveland Guardians, at 7:15 p.m. ET on Saturday. Gavin Williams (11-6, 3.56 ERA) will start for the Guardians, who are 58-59 this season and third in the AL Central. Anthony Kay (8-5, 4.09 ERA) is the expected starter for the White Sox, who are 59-56 and first in the AL Central.

How to watch Cleveland Guardians vs. Chicago White Sox

Guardians vs. White Sox odds

  • Favorite Moneyline: Guardians -133
  • Underdog Moneyline: White Sox +110
  • Total: 7
  • Total Over Odds: -115
  • Total Under Odds: -105

Injury reports

Guardians

Slade Cecconi: 15 Day IL (Arm), Shawn Armstrong: 60 Day IL (Leg)

White Sox

Joey Bart: 10 Day IL (Hand), Kyle Teel: 10 Day IL (Ankle), Chris Murphy: 15 Day IL (Flexor), Tanner Murray: 60 Day IL (Shoulder), Prelander Berroa: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Ky Bush: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Mike Vasil: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Jordan Leasure: 60 Day IL (Flexor), Brooks Baldwin: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Drew Thorpe: 60 Day IL (Elbow)

Stats to know

  • Cleveland’s Chase DeLauter has hit 12 home runs this season. He has also tallied 56 RBIs and has scored 45 runs. In 419 plate appearances, he has recorded a .280 BA, .356 OBP and .439 SLG with a 10.7% walk rate and a 14.3% strikeout rate. He has been effective on the base paths, recording seven steals on nine attempts.
  • In 369 plate appearances, Jose Ramirez is hitting .234/.334/.386 with a .720 OPS and 28 steals on 30 attempts. He has hit 10 long balls, driven in 35 runs and scored 52 times.
  • Miguel Vargas is hitting for a .234 BA, .341 OBP and .468 SLG with an 18.2% strikeout rate and a 12.8% walk rate. His OPS is .809 and he has scored 76 runs. In 500 plate appearances, he has hit 24 home runs (16th in MLB) and driven in 67 runs. Vargas has recorded 12 steals on 14 attempts.
  • In 471 plate appearances, Chase Meidroth has posted a 22.9% strikeout rate and a 9.8% walk rate while slashing .274/.351/.405 with 11 home runs, 44 RBIs and 67 runs scored.

This watch guide was created using technology provided by Data Skrive.

Betting/odds, ticketing and streaming links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.

Photo: Jamie Squire, Ishika Samant, Scott Taetsch, Alika Jenner / Getty Images

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