Tebbutt: Leylah is a drama destroyer

Leylah Annie Fernandez is a whirlwind of perpetual movement and ambition on the tennis court docket. That led to a pair of one-sided wins in a complete of simply an hour and 53 minutes in opposition to Latvian gamers Darja Semenistaja on Friday and Daniela Vismane on Saturday.

Fortunately for the suspense quotient of the Qualifier weekend of Billie Jean King Cup motion on the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, Rebecca Marino wanted much more time on court docket Friday – two hours and 7 minutes – for her win over Vismane than Fernandez did in her match victories by scores of 6-1, 6-2 in opposition to Semenistaja and 6-2, 6-1 versus Vismane.

Marino’s hard-fought match was doubtful till deep into the ultimate set of her 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-3 win. These outcomes gave Canada an insurmountable 3-0 lead in opposition to Latvia and earned it a spot within the BJK Cup Finals in November.

Fernandez, 19 years previous and ranked No. 21, was near impeccable in opposition to Vismane on Saturday, displaying off her capacity to play a variation of tennis ping-pong – hitting the ball loopy early with a devastating mixture of angles, depth and energy.

To place issues in some form of perspective, it must be remembered she was matched with gamers ranked No. 389 (19-year-old Semenistaja) and No. 267 (21-year-old Vismane).    

On her strategy to the 2021 US Open closing, she defeated three top-10 gamers – Naomi Osaka, Elina Svitolina and Aryna Sabalenka – so opposition corresponding to Semenistraja and Vismane offered a very totally different problem on the Laykold indoor arduous court docket. “You simply must step on the court docket with the identical respect that you’ve got once I’m dealing with Naomi, Aryna and Elina,” Fernandez stated. “You must have the identical respect once you’re going to face Darja or Daniela as a result of they earned their spot on the workforce they usually earned their spot to be on court docket at the moment. It’s all a psychological recreation and when you’re capable of finding that house in your head, every thing can fall into place.”

As she did in opposition to Marino on Friday, Vismane competed intensely the entire match however she was unable to counter a relentless Fernandez onslaught that resulted in a winners to unforced errors ratio of 23/11 and a full-on, strain return recreation that solely allowed her opponent to win 25 per cent of second-serve factors.

“I’m very pleased with the best way I performed,” Fernandez stated. “Yesterday (in opposition to Semenistaja) I used to be just a little extra nervous than at the moment. However that’s regular. I knew she (Vismane) could be just a little extra aggressive and I simply tried to focus on myself and put preserve extra balls in play and make her play extra. And I need to get higher within the subsequent few tournaments.”

What are these tournaments? “I feel the primary match might be in Madrid (beginning April 28), then Rome after which French Open,” she stated. “Afterwards we do not know what’s going to occur for the rest of the yr.” In addition to Fernandez’s blinding performances, the weekend might be remembered for Marino’s gritty win on Friday, and for the therapeutic expertise of taking part in in her hometown two years after the dying of her father and within the preliminary phases of the town and the nation rising from the constraints of the COVID-19 pandemic.

There was an emotional second after the Fernandez match when Marino and her mom Catherine have been interviewed by Sportsnet’s Caroline Cameron about Joe Marino (above at Wimbledon in 2011) who died at age 59 precisely two years to the day from Marino’s victory over Vismane on Friday.

“It marks two years from my father’s passing on April 15^th,” Marino stated. “For me to have gotten the win on that particular anniversary, surrounded by our family and friends – the primary (pandemic) time we might be collectively – I feel that was an effective way to honour my father, his legacy. I’m actually happy with that.”

About taking part in on the precise anniversary, she stated, “it served as an unbelievable motivator. At totally different factors by way of the match I’d be like ‘what would my dad do? I understand how he fought. I must carry that battle to this match.’ Many occasions once I’m on court docket whether or not it’s right here, or throughout different moments within the yr, I all the time consider that and it actually spurs me on regardless of how I’m feeling.”

Within the doubles match that wrapped up the weekend of BJK Cup Qualifier motion, Canadians Gabriela Dabrowski and Carol Zhao mixed to defeat Semenistaja and Vismane, substituting for the previously-named Latvian pair, by the rating of 6-3, 6-1.  

With the victory, Canada heads to the BJK Cup Finals to be held at a web site nonetheless to be decided from November 8-13.

It joins 2021 runner-up Switzerland, Australia, Belgium and Slovakia in addition to the six different winners of this weekend’s Qualifiers – Czech Republic, Italy, Kazakhstan, Poland, Spain, United States – and probably a wild card from the eventual host nation.

With a full roster – Fernandez ranked No. 21, Marino at No. 111, Dabrowski No. 9 in doubles and Bianca Andreescu at No. 120 (and a present protected rating of No. 22) – Canada could be among the many favourites to win the sixtieth version of the BJK Cup, generally known as the Fed Cup till it was rebranded in 2020.

Captain Heidi El Tabakh confirmed that notion when she stated about attainable success in November, “I feel to begin with it’s having a wholesome workforce. If now we have all our high gamers and hopefully they’re up for it and need to play for his or her nation. I actually do consider that if now we have a strong workforce of high gamers together with Bianca, Leylah, Rebecca, Gaby, Carol and Genie – hopefully she’s again and wholesome and taking part in on tour – I feel now we have a superb likelihood. That’s the place we belong.”

Fernandez was much more unequivocal on court docket following her win Saturday. Boldly and enthusiastically she declared in regards to the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, “we are able to win it” to wild cheers from the Pacific Colesium crowd.

Function Photograph: Joe Ng