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Leylah Fernandez shared her thrill of reaching the Hong Kong Open finals, her first WTA final after a gap of 593 days.
Canadian tennis star Leylah Fernandez soared into her first finals in 18 months by beating fifth seed Anna Blinkova 6-2, 7-5. Fernandez is looking to claim her first WTA Tour title since winning the 2022 Monterrey Open against Camila Osorio.
The 21-year-old will be up against Katerina Siniakova on Sunday at the 2023 Hong Kong Open finals. Talking about winning the semi-finals against Blinkova, she said:
"This match was extremely tough.”
"The first set I played well, the second set she started making more balls and being very aggressive. I just tried to stay calm. I remembered my coach's words to me: this is a battle, just enjoy it, have fun and put on a show for everyone," she added.
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However, Leylah Fernandez was unaware of the fact that it was her first final after a long drought. A reporter asked her:
“I understand this is your first tour final since Monterrey in March last year. How does it feel?”
To this, she expressed her surprise and extended gratitude towards her team who couldn’t join her in Hong Kong.
“Wow. That long? It feels amazing. I’m super happy. I have so many emotions right now. Happiness, sadness because my full team isn’t here with me. But you know they’re encouraging me from back home, they’re giving me lots of words of encouragement and positivity,” said Fernandez.
Leylah expressed her happiness at being able to play in front of her fans.
“Then of course I am super happy to be playing in front of everybody, the fans here in Hong Kong. Thank you so much for making this extra special,” she added.
“I don’t play players younger than me” - Leylah Fernandez after defeating 18-year-old Linda Fruhivirtova
21-year-old Leylah Fernadez talked about competing against players younger than her, something she hasn’t come across much in her professional career.
The young Canadian player defeated 18-year-old Linda Fruhvirtova 7-6(2) 6-2 in the quarterfinals of the Hong Kong Open. Before this, she had defeated 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva 6-3, 6-1, 6-3 in the round 16.
Leylah opened up about not playing against players younger than her quite often.
"Normally for me at my age, I don’t play players younger than me," she said.
Leylah expressed gratitude towards her fans for showing support during her matches.
"That’s 2 rounds in a row that I’ve played younger players... I’m just happy I was able to fight. I think it was all thanks to the fans," she said.
