‘Relentless’ Fernandez determined to leave Roland Garros with no regrets

SPORTSCENTRE Reporter

Follow| Archive

Leylah Annie Fernandez got a special salutation during the first week of Roland Garros. 

"Rafael Nadal went by and said, 'Hi,' to her," said Jorge Fernandez, who is Leylah Annie's dad and coach. "He literally stopped and said, 'Hi.' Her eyes went big. He left and she's just slapping me on the arm, and she wouldn't stop slapping me. She's going, 'I can't believe I just saw Nadal and he stopped to say hi.' We have to keep reminding ourselves that we're living this dream."

Growing up, Fernandez didn't just dream of rubbing shoulders with the top players in the game. She dreamed of being one. The 19-year-old from Laval, Que. is determined to turn that dream into a reality. And her determination may be her greatest asset. 

"She's tough as nails," said Tennis Canada's head of women's pro and transition tennis Sylvain Bruneau, who coached Bianca Andreescu to the 2019 US Open title. "She's so focused. Every single point she shows up. She's relentless."

Fernandez showed that at last year's US Open where she dispatched higher-ranked opponents Naomi Osaka, Angelique Kerber, Elina Svitolina and Aryna Sabalenka en route to the championship match. Now, she's doing it again on a different surface and on a different continent, but on the same big Grand Slam stage.  

Fernandez, the No. 17 seed, was resilient on Sunday during a fourth-round match at Court Philippe-Chatrier. After a fast start, she dropped the second set against 2019 Roland Garros semifinalist Amanda Anisimova, the No. 27 seed. Fernandez then saved three straight break points early in the third set before ultimately winning 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. 

"She has this way about her that kind of puts a little bit of discomfort in her opponents just