Canadian teenager Leylah Fernandez continued her remarkable US Open run as she beat 2016 champion Angelique Kerber to advance to the quarter-finals on Sunday. On the eve of her 19th birthday, Fernandez backed up her win over Naomi Osaka with a 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2 victory over Germany’s Kerber.
She battled back from a 4-2 deficit in the second set to force a tie-break and barely let up from then on. Fernandez will face fifth seed Elina Svitolina for a semi-final spot.
Fernandez doubled over as her victory was confirmed, before she was given a standing ovation by a full crowd on Louis Armstrong Stadium.
Fernandez is one of three teenagers to have broken through at the US Open, registering victories over four-time Slam champion Osaka and three-time winner Kerber.
Fellow 18-year-olds Emma Raducanu of Britain and Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz have also advanced to the fourth round, with Alcaraz taking out third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas earlier in the week.
Born in Montreal, Fernandez was cut from the provincial development program at a young age, with the family moving to Florida to build her and her sister’s careers. (BBC)
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