No. 1 Barty repeats as Miami champ when Andreescu retires

MIAMI – Ash Barty pushed a forehand winner into the open court as her opponent, Bianca Andreescu, laid on her back in the far corner, injured yet again.

With that, the Miami Open final was decided.

Andreescu limped through 11 more points before she retired, crying, shaking her head and trailing 6-3, 4-0.

The No. 1-ranked Barty won her second successive Miami title Saturday, and the Australian was already in control of the match when Andreescu turned her right foot while hitting a forehand and sprawled to the hard court. Barty hit one more shot to win the point, and play continued.

But during the ensuing changeover, a trainer taped Andreescu’s foot, and after another game the injury-plagued Canadian reluctantly called it quits.

“I really do feel for Bianca,” Barty said. “She has had such a rough trot with injuries in the past.”

Andreescu was again tearful at the start of her postmatch news conference, when she explained that her trainer convinced her to retire rather than risk further injury.

“I didn’t want to stop,” she said. “I trusted him, and I knew it was the best decision.”

The tournament was the first in the United States for the 20-year-old Andreescu since she won the 2019 U.S. Open. She sat out 2020 because of injuries and the coronavirus pandemic and now faces another possible layoff.

“I’m going to see what’s up with my foot, and start visualizing the healing process if it’s something bad,” Andreescu said.

On Sunday, 19-year-old Italian Jannik Sinner will try to become the youngest men’s champion in tournament history when he plays No. 26-seeded Hubert Hurkacz of Poland. Each is seeking the biggest title of his career.

Barty made her own breakthrough by winning the 2019 Miami championship. The tournament was canceled last year at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

Five other women have earned consecutive Miami titles: Stefanie Graf, Monica Seles, Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario, Venus Williams and Serena Williams.