Unseeded Fernandez reaches 1st Slam final at US Open

New York, Sep 10 (AP): Leylah Fernandez’s first major semifinal, at the US Open just days after her 19th birthday, did not go her way at the start.
Still, she recovered from dropping the initial three games to take a lead. Then, her opponent, No 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka, pushed a match filled with momentum swings to a third set. No matter what, Fernandez did not worry. Didn’t waver.
And why would she at this point? The Canadian’s poise, it seems, is as limitless has her potential. And no foe, no matter how accomplished or highly ranked, poses an insurmountable problem. Speedy afoot and steady at crunch time, the unseeded Fernandez edged Sabalenka 7-6 (3) 4-6 6-4 on Thursday night in Arthur Ashe Stadium, earning right to play for a Grand Slam title.
It was the 73rd-ranked Fernandez’s fourth consecutive three-set victory over a seeded opponent. First came No. 3 Naomi Osaka, the 2018 and 2020 US Open champion. Then came No. 16 Angelique Kerber, the 2016 champ. That was followed by No 5 Elina Svitolina and Sabalenka.
“That’s years and years and years of hard work and tears and blood,” said Fernandez, who could give Canada its second US Open women’s title in quick succession, following Bianca Andreescu’s triumph in 2019. “Everything. On court, off court. Sacrifices.”
Fernandez, whose birthday was Monday, was born in Montreal to an Ecuadorian father who is also her coach, although he is not with her in New York, instead offering coaching tips in daily phone conversations and a Filipino Canadian mother. The family now lives in Florida.
In Saturday’s final, the left-handed Fernandez will face either another unseeded teen, 18-year-old qualifier Emma Raducanu of Britain, or 17th-seeded Maria Sakkari of Greece. Neither of them has participated in a Grand Slam title match, either. At the end of the first set and again the third, it was Sabalenka, a Wimbledon semifinalist in July, who let things get away from her. In the last game, she double-faulted twice in a row to set up match point, then sailed a forehand long.
Fernandez collapsed to the court and put her hands to her face.
Nearly 2 1/2 hours before that, it was Sabalenka who looked in control, claiming 12 of the first 14 points for a 3-0 lead. Just eight minutes had elapsed and most spectators were yet to reach their seats. Not until later did the 20,000-plus in the stands rally the fist-aloft Fernandez with chants of Let’s go, Leylah! Let’s go! accompanied by rhythmic clapping.