Leylah Fernandez Announces Retirement Citing Personal Struggles:’I’ve Been a Lot Lately….
NEW YORK: Those who doubted Leylah Fernandez will be putting a chip on her shoulder, even though the Canadian teenager may not feel the weight of expectation as she enters the U.S. Open final.
Fernandez will have the last laugh on Saturday when she competes against fellow teen Emma Raducanu for her first Grand Slam title and a $2.5 million winner’s purse. Fernandez was dismissed from Tennis Quebec’s development program when she was seven years old, and her teachers advised her to put her studies first and forget about becoming a professional.
After defeating second seed Aryna Sabalenka 7-6(3) 4-6 6-4, Fernandez remarked, “A lot of people underestimated me, my family, and my goals.” “They repeatedly said, ‘No,’ that I should simply focus on going to school instead of becoming a professional tennis player.
