Leylah Annie Fernandez was unable to build off her impressive performances in Stuttgart and Madrid last month as the 23-year-old from Laval was stunned 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 by world No. 160 Rebeka Masarova in the Internazionali BNL d’Italia second round on Friday.
Fernandez was the last Canadian woman remaining in the singles draw after Victoria Mboko withdrew from the event earlier in the day due to an illness.
Both Fernandez and Masarova did not look the most comfortable on serve. The Canadian No. 2 broke four times on seven attempts but was only able to back up two of those breaks. As for the Swiss, she did not make life easy for herself on her delivery, committing ten double faults on the night, but her five breaks on ten opportunities aided her comeback.
Masarova didn’t have a comfortable start on her delivery. The Swiss had to battle through a power outage in her opening service game prior to securing the tight hold, then two double faults at 2-2 had her up against break point, which she saved before drawing back level at two apiece.
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At 3-3, 30-all, Fernandez’s first double fault proved costly as she faced her first bit of stress. The Canadian had the perfect chance to save but put too much on her backhand swinging volley and conceded serve. Undeterred, the 23-year-old fought back from 40-love in the ensuing game, winning nine points on the bounce to break back and later go 5-4 in front.
Fernandez kept on rolling as she soon held double set point in her next return game. Masarova succumbed to the pressure and committed her sixth double fault of the opener to hand the Canuck a one-set advantage.
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The world No. 23 had the opportunity to take a strong hold of the second, scoring back-to-back breaks from 1-2; however, Fernandez failed to consolidate each loss of serve as Masarova managed to stay in the match and keep the set balanced.
The Swiss’ resilience was rewarded with a vital break at 4-4, gifting her the chance to serve for the second. With set point, the 26-year-old unleashed a forehand winner to send the match the distance.
For the first time since the opening game of the second set, Fernandez held without facing a break point to lead 2-1. Though, that comfort on serve did not last long as the Canadian was soon under pressure again at 2-2, 30-40, with Masarova converting to step into the driver’s seat. The Swiss backed up her crucial break to take the 4-2 edge.
Masarova’s serve picked up when it needed to, despite recording two more double faults along the way, as she held to love at 5-4 to serve out the match and complete the upset.
The Lavalloise still has doubles to play in Rome, partnering with Italian Elisabetta Cocciaretto to take on No. 2 seeds Taylor Townsend and Katerina Siniakova.
Feature Photo: Martin Sidorjak
