Fernandez reclaims the title of Canada's top female player!

When it comes to Canadian tennis stars, most players would mention Andreescu. Born in 2000, this Canadian athlete became a Grand Slam champion as early as the 2019 season. That year, she first broke through qualifying at the WTA250 Auckland tournament and reached her first-ever tour-level singles final.

Although she ultimately lost to Görges and finished as runner-up, she quickly bounced back in March at the WTA1000 Paris Bank Open, entering as a wildcard and defeating Wang Qiang, Muguruza, Svitolina, and others to reach the final, where she defeated Kerber to claim her first title.

Of course, Andreescu’s remarkable 2019 season didn’t stop there. She also triumphed at the Rogers Cup and the US Open, with her US Open victory making her the first Canadian ever to win a Grand Slam singles title.

However, in recent seasons, plagued by injuries and other setbacks, Andreescu has been unable to return to her peak form, and this week her ranking remains outside the top 200.

Following Andreescu, Canadian tennis has seen another rising star this season: Mboko, born August 26, 2006, who won five ITF singles titles early this year. During the North American summer hard court season, Mboko defeated four Grand Slam champions—Kenin, Gauff, Osaka, and Rybakina—at the WTA1000 Montreal tournament, capturing her first career tour-level singles title.

Thanks to her outstanding performance in that event, Mboko’s world ranking soared like a rocket to No. 23 this week. However, with Fernandez winning the WTA250 Osaka title last week, her ranking rose to No. 22, surpassing Mboko and reclaiming the spot as Canada’s top female player.

Like Mboko and Andreescu, Fernandez is also a player born in the 2000s. Born in 2002 and just turned 23 this year, she reached her first Grand Slam singles final at the 2021 US Open after defeating top players such as Osaka, Svitolina, and Sabalenka, though she eventually lost to Raducanu.

This season, besides winning in Osaka, Fernandez also claimed the singles title at the WTA500 Washington tournament, bringing her career total to five WTA tour singles titles.

Fernandez’s achievements in her junior years were impressive as well. At 16, she won the French Open junior girls’ singles title, becoming the first Canadian to do so, and she was once ranked No. 1 in the junior world rankings.

This week, Fernandez continues to compete at the WTA500 Tokyo tournament. Her first-round opponent is Rybakina, who is fighting for the last spot in the year-end finals. So, who do you think will come out on top in this match?(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Barbie)