Canadian teen Leylah Fernandez wins first-ever WTA title
Canadian Leylah Fernandez has won the first WTA title of her career.
She beat Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic 6-1, 6-4 in the final of the WTA 250 Abierto GNP Seguros to claim the title.
“I just tried to think of it as another match,” Fernandez told reporters following her win. “I just wanted to focus on my game, on executing the game plan my coaches were telling me, execute my practices and I think today was one of those days where my balls went in when it mattered the most and I’m just very happy with it.”
The Laval, Quebec, native was able to storm out of the gate and gain a 5-0 lead. She was then able to claim the first set easily 6-1.
The 🇨🇦 @leylahfernandez takes the opening set, 6-1!#AbiertoGNPSeguros pic.twitter.com/NWV0ikYNPl
— wta (@WTA) March 21, 2021
The next set got challenging for Fernandez, and she was down a break early in the second set. However, she managed to fight back and serve for the match to win.
✨ First WTA title ✨@leylahfernandez secures the title 🏆 with a 6-1, 6-4, win over Golubic!#AbiertoGNPSeguros pic.twitter.com/Tnt7C2RhZ3
— wta (@WTA) March 22, 2021
“It was just a little sad because my family isn’t here with me and we can’t celebrate as a family,” Fernandez added.
“It was a family effort for years. But I was very happy that the hard work, the sacrifices we’ve done since the beginning is paying off and then just hoping that there will be many more and this time my family can be there with me every step of the way in the tournament.”
The 18-year-old will rise to a career-high 69th in the WTA world rankings after the victory.
Fernandez is expected to be in Florida for the Miami Open, where she is scheduled to play in a qualifying match against Romanian Mihaela Buzarnescu on Monday.
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