New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
Canadian teen Fernandez into semis with fans’ help
NEW YORK — When Leylah Fernandez wins a pivotal point at the U.S. Open — and she’s won enough of them to become the tournament’s youngest semifinalist since Maria Sharapova in 2005 — the teenager with the exciting game and enthusiasm to match raises her right fist or windmills her arms, firing up herself and the crowd.
What often happens next, after good points or bad, is just as important to the success of the unseeded Canadian left-hander with the quick reflexes: She’ll turn her back to the court and her opponent, face the wall behind the baseline for a few moments, gather herself and repeat whatever that day’s mantra of choice is.
During Tuesday’s 6-3,
3-6, 7-6 (5) victory against No. 5 seed Elina Svitolina in Arthur Ashe Stadium, which followed wins over past U.S. Open champions and former No. 1s Naomi Osaka and Angelique Kerber, Fernandez focused on self-belief.
“I was only thinking of trusting myself, trusting my game. After every point, win or lose, I would always tell myself, ‘Trust my game. Go for my shots. Just see where the ball goes,’” said Fernandez, who turned 19 on Monday and had never been past the third round in her previous half-dozen major appearances. “I see what I’m feeling. I see if there’s one phrase that really catches me or that makes me more motivated than the others. I just keep it throughout the match.”
It’s working. And with no players from the United States left to pull for, the
U.S. Open fans are adopting a neighbor from the North to treat as one of their own — although the 73rd-ranked Fernandez actually is based in Florida after being born in Montreal to a Filipino
Canadian mother and an Ecuadorian father.
Fernandez’s father is also her coach but isn’t in New York; he stayed home for what Fernandez called “personal reasons” and is offering tips in daily phone conversations.
“I called him right after the match, when I went to the locker room,” she said. “He honestly told me that I put him through hell and back with this match.”
And the spectators loved every minute of it.
“Thanks to you, I was able to push through today,” she told the crowd after edging Svitolina, the Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist whose been to two Grand Slam semifinals, including at the 2019 U.S. Open.
Truth is, Fernandez likes the spotlight.
Asked whether she’s more nervous against a top player in a big arena or a lower-ranked player at a smaller site, her reply was simple: “There’s no difference.”
Hard to argue that right now.
It was touch-and-go down the stretch — even after Fernandez grabbed the opening set, even after she led 5-2 in the third. One way in which she held a clear advantage: Of points that lasted more than eight shots, Fernandez won 26, Svitolina 16.
Felix Auger-Aliassime has reached his first Grand Slam semifinal at the U.S. Open after 18-year-old Carlos Alcaraz stopped playing in the second set shortly after a visit from the trainer.
It was not immediately clear why Alcaraz retired from the match.
Auger-Aliassime was leading 6-3, 3-1 and called it “a weird ending.”
He is a 21-year-old from Canada who is coached by Toni Nadal, Rafael’s uncle.
Auger-Aliassime will face No. 2 seed Daniil Medvedev for a berth in the final.
Medvedev, a 25-year-old from Russia, earned a spot in the final four at Flushing Meadows for the third consecutive year by stopping the surprising run of Dutch qualifier Botic van de Zandschulp 6-3, 6-0, 4-6, 7-5.
As in the women’s draw, only one man in the quarterfinals already owns a major trophy: Novak Djokovic, who not only is seeking a record-breaking 21st but also trying to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to win a calendar-year Grand Slam.
Medvedev has come close. He lost to Djokovic in this year’s Australian Open final and to Rafael Nadal in the 2019 U.S. Open final.