Filipino-Canadian tennis star Leylah Fernandez opened her U.S. Open campaign with a confident straight-sets win Aug. 30, defeating China’s Zhang Shuai 6-3, 6-2 to reach the second round at Flushing Meadows.
The 23-year-old from Laval, Quebec, was sharp from the start in the Day 1 first-round match, winning in 1 hour and 15 minutes. Fernandez saved all seven break points she faced, converted three of seven break opportunities, and finished with four aces. The victory is her first singles win at a Grand Slam this year.
Fernandez, the tournament’s No. 31 seed, faced a difficult early test in Zhang, an experienced and aggressive opponent. But the Canadian stayed composed through the match, controlling key points and denying Zhang any breakthrough on serve.
“I’m extremely pleased,” Fernandez said in her on-court interview. “Zhang Shuai, she’s an extremely tough player, super aggressive, so I knew I had to be focused from the get-go.”
Fernandez credited her coaches and the crowd for helping her maintain that focus.
“I’m just glad that I stayed positive, listened to my coaches in the box, and of course, with the crowd here helping me, it was so much fun,” she said. “I enjoyed every moment here.”
The victory returns Fernandez to the tournament where she made her breakthrough run in 2021, when she reached the U.S. Open final as a 19-year-old. New York crowds have continued to embrace her in the years since, Fernandez said, and the city also holds a personal connection for her family.
“They do treat me like family,” Fernandez said of the fans. “Honestly, I do have a deep connection with New York. I got family here. My great-uncles, they were jockeys. They were horse trainers, too. So I got a little bit of connection here.”
She added that she hopes to continue playing in front of what she described as a home-like crowd.
“Hopefully I get to do well in front of a home crowd, and I hope to see you in my next matches,” she said.
Fernandez also arrived in New York wearing a flamingo-pink outfit from Lululemon, a color choice she said fits both the energy of the city and her own outlook.
“New York is electric, it’s vibrant,” she said. “Lululemon decided to bring out the flamingo fun tone, and it means a lot because it’s also vibrant like me. I’m very positive—at least I try to be. So it makes me feel good, makes me feel confident.”
Fernandez will face either Hungary’s Panna Udvardy or Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew in the second round.
