Leylah Fernandez surpasses a former Grand Slam champion in new landmark for Canada after winning Washington Open title

Leylah Fernandez stormed to a fourth WTA title on Sunday evening after winning the Washington Open final.

The 22-year-old was dominant throughout the week, beating the likes of Elena Rybakina and Jessica Pegula on her way to the final.

The Canadian followed up these intense victories by comprehensively dismissing her opponent in the final, beating Anna Kalinskaya 6-1 6-2. Fernandez gave Kalinskaya little chance, limiting the Russian to just a 17 per cent winning return on her second serve points.

The title in Washington was her Fernandez’s since the 2023 Hong Kong Open and her fourth overall. Victory in Washington marked the Canadian’s first WTA 500 victory.

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Upon capturing the DC crown, Fernandez overtook a Canadian former Grand Slam champion in one particular statistical area.

Leylah Fernandez surpasses Bianca Andreescu

Now-ranked 187 in the world, Bianca Andreescu stunned the tennis world in 2019 by winning the US Open.

The 19-year-old, seeded 15th, caused one of the shocks of the 21st century, defeating 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams in the final to lift her maiden Grand Slam title.

Andreescu had shown excellent form heading into the tournament, winning the Canadian Open in the weeks preceding the US Open.

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However, the Canadian, who also won Indian Wells in 2019, has struggled to replicate the same form since. The 25-year-old has slipped down the rankings and failed to win a WTA Tour title since 2019.

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This has paved the way for Leylah Fernandez to overtake Andreescu in one key statistic.

As per OptaAce, Leylah Fernandez is now the Canadian player with the most WTA level titles claimed since the introduction of the WTA Tour’s format in 1990.

Injury concern after Bianca Andreescu defeats Barbora Krejcikova

On Sunday, Bianca Andreescu produced a vintage performance to defeat former Wimbledon champion, Barbora Krejcikova at the Canadian Open.

However, on one of her match points, Andreescu appeared to roll her ankle. She became visibly emotional, and Krejcikova rushed to comfort the Canadian.

Andreescu has a troubled history with injuries, having previously suffered torn ankle ligaments. She has also undergone knee surgery.

Remarkably, Andreescu managed to close out the match. She said in her post-match interview with the WTA that the situation was ‘very unfortunate.’

An emotional Andreescu said: “Well, at the end there, I got very lucky. It’s very unfortunate what happened obviously.”

“I don’t know what to say.”

Meanwhile, Leylah Fernandez faces Maya Joint in her first round match at the Canadian Open. Fernandez defeated Joint in the first round of Washington, winning 6-3 6-3.

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