By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Thursday August 10, 2023
Still just 20, Canada's Leylah Fernandez is finding her best form again after a long, down period.
Photo Source: Monterrey
Leylah Fernandez, still just 20 years ago, shook up the tennis world two years ago at the US Open with her own brand of high-energy tennis, which took her all the way to the US Open final as a 19-year-old.
Since then the former World No.13, a fleet-footed southpaw with power that belies her 5’6” stature has plummeted in the rankings, all the way down to No.96 in June. But home cooking has proved vital for the Montreal native, who snapped a 10-match losing streak against the Top 20 with a dramatic win over Beatriz Haddad Maia on Wednesday at the Omnium Banque Nationale.
Watching Fernandez navigate a tricky encounter with one of the toughest and most talented fighters in the women’s game, it’s easy to see that she still possesses top-level talent.
Now, with the confidence that comes from a few big wins on home soil, she’s hoping that she has turned a corner results-wise.
“I hope it's going to revitalize my season,” Fernandez said of her win over the Brazilian. “Winning against a Top-20 player is very special. It's been more than a year since I have won against a good player like her.
“I believe that all the work I've been doing in the past years finally is showing in a match. I was able to execute my match plan, my game, and I had fun on the court.”
Forget 2021: “I’m a Completely Different Person”
Fernandez, who will turn 21 on September, believes that the difficult times she has experienced of late (including a foot injury that caused her to miss significant time last year) will make her a better player down the road.
“I'm a completely different person," Fernandez said. “Right now I have the experience. I've gone through some good times, some bad times, and I think now I'm actually better than what I was doing in 2021, and we're just trying to build on that. We're trying to keep working hard, keep trusting the process.”
Fernandez, who faces American Danielle Collins in the round of 16 on Thursday (could be Friday if weather does not improve in Montreal), says that the constant search for improvement is the key to developing as a player and a person.
“Mistakes will happen,” she said. “Matches will be lost. The most important thing is if we make the necessary corrections, and I'm happy with the team that I have that they always try to find ways to make me be better and always pushing me to be the best version of myself. So I think that's what's the most important thing at the moment for 2023.
“2021 is in the past. We try to forget about it and just build on what we have at the moment.”
Ranking Not Important
The woman who earned three Top-5 wins to reach the 2021 US Open final is focused on her level of tennis rather than her ranking, and that’s why she can take confidence from her last two matches in Montreal.
“I think today's win means a lot to me because then I get to say even though my ranking is not there, my level of play is getting better, and that's the most important thing,” she said. “I don't need to think about the ranking. I just need to think of my development and my game, if it's improving or not. I'm glad that today playing against a top-20 player I can see that my game has definitely gotten better.
“I just have to keep going on this track, this road, and hopefully get ready for future tournaments.”