It will be a classic teens battle in the 2021 US Open as 19-year-old Fil-Canadian Leyla Fernandez booked the finals ticket in the women’s singles and is set to face 18-year-old Emma Raducanu of Great Britain on Sunday, Sept. 12.
Fernandez successfully completed her quest after defeating Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka 7-6, 4-6, 6-4 in the semifinals in New York City on Thursday night (Friday in the Philippines).
The Canadian with Filipino and Ecuadorian roots had a sluggish opening against Sabalenka who led the match, 4-1 in the first set. However, Fernandez answered by winning four of the next five matches to force a tiebreak at 5-5.
The World No. 73 Fernandez capitalized on clever attacks over World No. 2 Sabalenka in the tie-break match to score 6-3 and complete her come-from-behind set 1 victory.
Fernandez, whose mother has roots from Leyte and Ilocos Norte, failed to duplicate his winning streak in the second set after
Sabalenka forced a decider with a 6-4 score.
In the third set, Fernandez pummelled a 4-2 advantage, but Sabalenka used her expertise to dominate the next two matches, tying the set at 4-4.
Both players showed their best in the scintillating match but 23-year-old Sabalenka had costly errors which Fernandez took advantage to build a 5-2 lead before the Filipino-Canadian claimed the much-deserved victory. This was Fernandez’s fourth consecutive upset victory at the US Open, following wins against defending champion Naomi Osaka and previous champion Angelique Kerber.
Meanwhile, British tennis star Raducanu is also heading to her first career Grand Slam final after beating Greece’s Maria Sakkari, 6-1, 6-4. By winning the game, she quadrupled her career earnings with her extraordinary run at this year’s US Open. She’s well positioned to become Britain’s highest-paid female athlete, marketing experts say.
Raducano and Fernandez were not born yet the last time two teenagers played in a Grand Slam final 22 years ago when Serena Williams (17) defeated Martina Hingis (18) to win the US Open.IMT
