"Being at home hits different" - Leylah Fernandez tightly hugs her mother as the duo celebrate her Miami Open progress

Leylah Fernandez embraced her mother Irene Fernandez tightly to celebrate the successful start of her campaign at the 2025 Miami Open. Last year, Fernandez made it to the third round of the tournament before being defeated by Jessica Pegula.

This year, Fernandez entered the WTA 1000 hard court tournament in Florida after participating in the 2025 BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, where she was eliminated in the second round by Jaqueline Cristian.

At the Miami Open, Fernandez began her campaign in the second round after receiving a bye in the first round. In her opening match, the Canadian faced off against Alycia Parks and emerged victorious with a score of 7-6(1), 6-3, advancing to the third round.

Following her win, Fernandez took to social media to share a series of photos of some of the special moments from the match. She also shared a picture of her tightly hugging her mother Irene Fernandez after the victory.

"Being at home hits different. Onto the 3rd round 👊 @miamiopen," Fernandez captioned her Instagram post.

In addition to her singles matches, Leylah Fernandez will also be participating in the doubles competition. She has teamed up with Nicole Melichar-Martinez, and together they will face the eighth-seeded pair of Sofia Kenin and Lyudmyla Kichenok in the first round.

---

Leylah Fernandez will face Ashlyn Krueger in Miami Open 3R

Leylah Fernandez at the 2025 Miami Open [Image Source: Getty Images]

Leylah Fernandez will go head-to-head with Ashlyn Krueger in the third round of the 2025 Miami Open on Sunday, March 23. Krueger entered the WTA 1000 hard court tournament in Florida after competing at the 2025 BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells. There, she managed to defeat compatriot Katie Volynets in the first round before being bested by 23rd seed Elina Svitolina in the second round.

Krueger then kicked off her Miami Open campaign with a solid victory over Renata Zarazua, securing a 6-3, 6-2 win. She then went on to face seventh seed Elena Rybakina in the second round, where she emerged victorious with a 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 scoreline and secured her a spot in the third round where she will go up against Fernandez.

Fernandez and Krueger have faced each other three times on the WTA Tour, with the American emerging victorious in two out of the three encounters. Their most recent clash took place in the quarterfinals of the 2025 Abu Dhabi Open, where Krueger emerged triumphant with a 7-5, 4-6, 6-2 win and then went on to finish as the runner-up, missing out on claiming the title after falling to Belinda Bencic in the final.

The winner of the upcoming third-round match between Fernandez and Krueger at the 2025 Miami Open will move on to face either ninth seed Zheng Qinwen or qualifier Taylor Townsend in the fourth round.