Canadian tennis player Bianca Andreescu won the Rogers Cup on Sunday in Toronto — just 17 miles away from her hometown of Mississauga — by defeating Serena Williams.
But it wasn’t the way Andreescu — or any tennis player — would want to win.
Williams retired from the match due to a back injury in the first set. Rather than immediately celebrate the historic win, the 19-year-old Andreescu went up to Serena to check on her and to tell her how much she’s idolized Serena for her whole career.
Williams was in tears on the bench, but the classy interaction with Andreescu put a bright spot on the unfortunate injury. It was a great show of sportsmanship, and the crowd certainly recognized that.
We could hear parts of the interaction on the broadcast:
“No, I’ve watched you your whole career. You’re a freaking beast, but injuries — I’ve been through so many already. I mean, you know how they are. This sucks … I know everything about you. I’m so sorry.”
What a great moment.
The Rogers Cup win would be Andreescu’s second professional win of her career, and she handled it with class.
