Canada’s Auger-Aliassime, Andreescu qualify for season-opening events

AUCKLAND, New Zealand — Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard opened her tennis season with a straight sets victory over American Madison Brengle on Monday at the ASB Classic.

Bouchard needed just over an hour to beat Brengle 6-3, 6-3 in first-round action in Auckland, New Zealand.

The Westmount, Que., native enters the 2019 season ranked 87th, while Brengle is one spot back at No. 88.

Earlier, Canadian teenagers Bianca Andreescu and Felix Auger-Aliassime earned spots in their respective main draws in season-opening tennis events.

Andreescu joins Bouchard in the main draw of the ASB Classic, while Auger-Aliassime will play in the main draw at the Tata Open Maharashtra. 

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Andreescu, of Mississauga, Ont., rallied to beat Germany’s Laura Siegemund 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 in the third round of qualifying on Monday.

The 18-year-old Canadian, seeded fifth in qualifying, took out the top seeded Siegemund in two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds and will now face Hungary’s Timea Babos in the main draw.

Auger-Aliassime advanced at the Tata Open Maharashtra on Sunday with a win over Italian Gianluigi Quinzi in his final qualifier.

The 18-year-old Auger-Aliassime, seeded first in qualifying, beat the seventh-seeded Quinzi 7-5, 6-3 to advance to the main draw of the ATP 250 tournament that begins Monday.

Auger-Aliassime enters the Maharashtra Open — his first tournament of the new tennis season — ranked 109th in the world. 

The Montreal native will play 39-year-old Ivo Karlovic of Croatia in the first round.

Karlovic, who turned pro the same year Auger-Aliassime was born, is No. 101.

The Canadian Press