At the age of 21, Leylah Fernandez is hardly a veteran, but she is the oldest player remaining in the top quarter of the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open draw after using all her experience to beat Mirra Andreeva and advance to the last eight. Fernandez, who won her first WTA title at the Monterrey Open in 2021, is hoping to win another title in this golden opportunity tournament.
Canada’s Leylah Fernandez looked back in form as she took down Russia’s Mirra Andreeva in three sets (3-6, 6-1, 6-3) to move onto the quarterfinals and a match against Linda Fruhvirtova at the Hong Kong Open.
Leylah Fernandez defeats Mirra Andreeva to reach Hong Kong quarterfinals
Leylah Fernandez’s 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 victory over 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva reversed the outcome of their previous meeting on clay in Madrid five months ago. That match had marked Andreeva’s first WTA win, serving as a catalyst for her rapid ascent into the Top 50 this year.
For the first set of their rematch, the youngster appeared to have the measure of Fernandez again. Out-maneuvering the 2021 US Open finalist with precise angles, Andreeva broke for 3-1 and maintained the lead, sealing the set with a fine forehand pass.
But Fernandez had come out with a different tactical approach – a commitment to forecourt aggression and swarming the net whenever possible. That began to pay dividends in the second set, and the World No. 60 was an increasingly dominant figure as she swept through 11 of the next 13 games. In total, Fernandez won 17 of her 27 net approaches and fired 36 winners to Andreeva’s 16.
Andreeva mustered some late resistance from 5-1 down in the decider, but it was too little, too late as Fernandez closed out the win with a pair of unreturnable serves. She advances to her fourth quarterfinal of the year.
“She’s very tough to play against,” said Leylah Fernandez afterwards. “I’m very happy with the way I fought and the way I found solutions. I wasn’t afraid of going to the net even though I was missing a lot.”
Leylah Fernandez will be vying for her first tour-level semifinal since her victory in Monterrey in 2022. Her opponent will be the 18-year-old Linda Fruhvirtova, who secured her spot with a 6-3, 7-5 win in an all-teenage clash against the 16-year-old qualifier Alina Korneeva. This matchup will mark the first meeting between Fernandez and Fruhvirtova, who previously won the 2022 Chennai championship and is now in her third quarterfinal of the season.
Leylah Fernandez faces Linda Fruhvirtova at Hong Kong quarterfinals
Leylah Fernandez will next face Linda Fruhvirtova of Czechia, who beat Russian Alina Korneeva 6-4, 7-5. The World No.179, Korneeva had impressed to reach the second round on her WTA main-draw debut, and came up with a series of fine winners as she stayed on the front foot against Fruhvirtova. But ultimately, the Czech’s steadiness won through in 1 hour and 31 minutes.
It would mark the first career meeting between Fernandez, who was ranked 60th on the WTA Tour, and Fruhvirtova, ranked No. 88. Fernandez had a strong start to the tournament, taking advantage of the early exit of the tournament’s top seed, Victoria Azarenka. Azarenka, a two-time Grand Slam champion, retired during their first-round match on Tuesday due to a leg injury after the two players had split the first two sets
