Fernández Champion at DC Open: Shake Shack and Female Power in Tennis

Leylah Fernandez Conquers the DC Open with an Impeccable Performance

Tennis player Leylah Fernandez was crowned champion of the DC Open, achieving the most important title of her career to date. Her victory was based on solid play, with an impressive backhand and a great ability to respond on the court. Fernandez, a 22-year-old Canadian left-hander, currently ranked 36th, capped off a week of intense matches with a resounding victory over Anna Kalinskaya in the final, with a score of 6-1, 6-2. This is the fourth individual title for Fernandez, all obtained in hard court tournaments, and the first in a WTA 500 event. The tennis player was close to winning a Grand Slam championship at the 2021 US Open, where she reached the final.

Leylah Fernandez proved her worth at the DC Open, surpassing top seed Jessica Pegula and Elena Rybakina, number 3.In the men’s bracket, the title went to Alex de Minaur, who achieved his tenth ATP title, the eighth on hard courts, after saving three championship points in an exciting match against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Fernandez had a tough road to the women’s final. In the second round, she needed 2 hours and 19 minutes to defeat Jessica Pegula, the US Open runner-up last year. Then, in the quarterfinals, she defeated Taylor Townsend in 2 hours and 20 minutes, and in the semifinals, after a marathon match that lasted 3 hours and 12 minutes, she defeated Elena Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion.

“We’ve been through a lot of challenges this week. It’s made me stronger, so if I can get through this week, with cramps, long matches, heat and humidity, I can get through anything,” said Fernandez.

Leylah Fernandez

Against Kalinskaya, who hadn’t lost a set until the final, Fernandez held firm, saving the only break point she faced and breaking her opponent’s serve on four occasions. A key factor was that Fernandez won 10 of the 12 points when Kalinskaya connected her second serve. In addition, Kalinskaya, 26 years old and with no tournament final victories, committed 24 unforced errors and only managed nine winning shots.