Leylah Fernandez, the tenacious Canadian tennis star, has once again captured the spotlight at the 2025 Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington, D.C., reaching the semi-finals with a string of impressive victories. As the 22-year-old World No. 27 prepares for a blockbuster clash against top seed Elena Rybakina, she opened up about the early skepticism she faced from coaches who doubted her physical capabilities before her meteoric rise on the WTA Tour. Fernandez’s journey from an undersized junior to a US Open finalist and Billie Jean King Cup champion is a testament to her unrelenting heart and belief, qualities that have silenced her critics and propelled her to new heights in 2025.
Reflecting on her early years, Fernandez shared a revealing anecdote from a junior tennis camp where coaches expressed serious concerns about her physicality. “I think because we knew I wasn’t going to be the tallest player, but we did know that I was fairly quick,” she said, recalling her childhood. At a mini-camp physical test involving a straight-line sprint, Fernandez was notably the slowest among her peers. “I was probably the slowest out of all of the girls there,” she admitted. “The coaches were concerned, like she’s not very good physically.” They voiced their worries to her parents, questioning her potential. But her parents, led by her father and coach Jorge, a former Ecuadorian soccer player, offered a powerful counterpoint. “My parents said, Yeah, but if you put a tennis ball in front of her and you ask her to run for every ball, she’s gonna do it,” Fernandez recounted. They emphasized her intangibles, noting, “Her heart and her belief in herself is much bigger than most of the girls in that camp.” This mindset became Fernandez’s guiding light, as she reminds herself daily, “Every time I’m doing fitness, knowing that I’m not going to be bigger, stronger, faster than most girls, I know if I have the right mindset and right belief in myself, I can kind of get to a lot of the balls on court.”
Fernandez’s grit was on full display in Washington, where she stormed into the semi-finals with a series of commanding performances. She opened her campaign with a straight-sets win over Eastbourne champion Maya Joint, showcasing her trademark speed and court coverage. In the second round, she pulled off a stunning upset against World No. 6 Jessica Pegula, a victory that underscored her ability to compete with the elite. “It definitely feels good to reach a semi,” Fernandez said after her quarter-final triumph over Taylor Townsend, a 6-4, 7-5 battle that highlighted her mental fortitude. “I think it’s been a while since I have reached a semis, almost a year. So for me, it’s a good steppingstone. I see that the work that I have been doing all year is paying off now. We wish it would have paid off earlier, but we can’t really complain.” Her run in D.C. marks her first WTA Tour-level semi-final since the 2024 Eastbourne final, signaling a resurgence after a mixed season that included a first-round French Open loss but a doubles final at Roland Garros alongside Townsend.
Standing at 5-foot-4, Fernandez has defied the modern trend of taller, power-based players dominating the WTA Tour. Her father’s unconventional coaching, rooted in his soccer background, emphasized agility and mental toughness to compensate for her smaller stature. “When we decided to pursue the professional career, we wanted to be No. 1,” Jorge once said, a bold vision that fueled Fernandez’s ascent to a career-high ranking of No. 13 in 2022. Her breakout came at the 2021 US Open, where, at 19, she defeated Naomi Osaka, Aryna Sabalenka, and Elina Svitolina en route to the final, falling to Emma Raducanu in a historic all-teen showdown. That run, coupled with her 2019 French Open junior title and three WTA singles titles—Monterrey in 2021 and 2022, Hong Kong in 2023—cemented her as a force. Her pivotal role in Canada’s 2023 Billie Jean King Cup triumph, where she defeated top-10 player Markéta Vondroušová, further showcased her clutch performance under pressure.
Fernandez’s Washington campaign reflects her evolution. Facing Rybakina, whom she lost to in the 2024 Doha semi-finals, she aims to leverage her left-handed spin and relentless defense. “I’m extremely lucky. I try to enjoy the opportunity as much as possible,” she said of her mental approach, a philosophy honed through years of overcoming doubt. Off the court, Fernandez’s vibrant personality shines—she’s fluent in English, French, and Spanish, loves salsa dancing, and builds Legos to unwind. Her Leylah Annie & Family Foundation supports education and sports, while endorsements from Lululemon, Babolat, and Morgan Stanley reflect her marketability. As she eyes a deep run in D.C. and the upcoming US Open, Fernandez’s story inspires, proving that heart and hustle can outshine physical limitations on the world’s biggest stages.
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