2 Years After Suffering a Serious Injury, Jennifer Brady Overwhelms a Familiar Foe as the American Tennis Beauty’s Comeback Continues to Inspire

Jennifer Brady has been through a lot over the previous two years. Things haven’t gone as planned for her since reaching the Australian Open final in 2021. The American dealt with persistent injuries that kept her out of the game for a long time. However, after two years of agony, she finally found solace in the most remarkable manner.

Brady played her first professional match in almost two years at last month’s ITF Canada event. The 28-year-old followed it up with her tour-level comeback at last week’s Citi Open. She ended up losing in the second round of both tournaments. In the ongoing Rogers Cup, Brady finally registered the win she yearned for.

Jennifer Brady bounces back in style

Two years ago, Brady was forced to retire against Jelena Ostapenko in their Cincinnati Open clash. Despite leading in the match, she could not progress further as she sustained a painful knee injury. What followed next was two years of uncertainty while bearing recurring knee issues. It took her two years, but the American finally got her revenge on Ostapenko.

Brady used her Protected Ranking to enter the tournament. It was her first WTA 1000 event since the nightmarish 2021 Cincinnati clash. As fate would have it, the American was again drawn to face Ostapenko in her first round in the comeback match. Brady started well and sealed the first set in a tie-break. A low-intensity second set saw her lose 6-0. However, Brady managed to bounce back from it, save two match points and seal the final set in yet another tie-break to win her first WTA 1000 match in two years!

The win over Ostapenko will do her confidence a world of good. However, Brady fans would quite possibly not want to hear about who she takes on next.

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Who does Brady face next?

Brady is set to take on the World No.3 Elena Rybakina in the second round of the Rogers Cup. After a hard-fought win over Ostapenko, the American would have preferred an easier opponent in the next round, but it wasn’t meant to be. The player from Kazakhstan will start the match as an overwhelming favorite and Brady would require a monumental effort to get over the line. However, in sports, one can never write off an athlete, especially a former Slam finalist.

Do you think Jennifer Brady can stun Elena Rybakina in the second round? Let us know in the comments.

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