Bianca Andreescu's bid to return to a Grand Slam ended Wednesday in Paris when Slovakia's Viktoriá Hrunčáková beat her 7-6, 4-6, 4-6 in the second round of French Open qualifying.
Andreescu, who last played a major at the 2024 US Open and lost in the first round there, fought through a tense opening set but could not close out the match after dropping the final two sets. She was out-aced 11-8 and converted three of 12 break-point chances, while surrendering five of 11 on her own serve. The result leaves Canada with one player still alive in qualifying.
Andreescu had been trying to make a Grand Slam return at Roland Garros, where her most recent major breakthrough came at Wimbledon in 2024, when she reached the third round. Her loss came on the same day Alexis Galarneau of Laval, Que., moved into the third and final round of qualifying with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Brazil's Pedro Boscardin Dias.
Galarneau saved 15 of 17 break-point opportunities and earned three breaks in seven chances to keep his run going. He next faces Italy's Federico Cina for a place in the main draw, with both players ranked outside the top 100. Liam Draxl, the other Canadian in action Wednesday, was eliminated 6-4, 1-6, 3-6 by the Netherlands' Jesper De Jong.
For Andreescu, the defeat adds another setback to a stop-start major campaign and pushes her return to Grand Slam tennis back again. For Canada, Galarneau is now the lone chance to reach the Roland Garros main draw from qualifying.
