Canada’s Leila Fernandez defeated fifth-seeded Anna Brinkova 6-2, 7-5 in the semi-finals of the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open to reach her first final of the season. Fernandes, ranked 60th at the start of the tournament, lost two sets in Hong Kong. She is aiming to win her first Hologic WTA Tour title since Monterrey in 2022.
Fernandez will face No. 85 Katerina Sinakova in Sunday’s final. With a win, the 21-year-old Canadian would have won the title in each of the past three seasons.
Hong Kong: Scores | Schedule | Draws
“This match was very tough,” Fernandes said. “Anna, she’s a great player, she’s very powerful and she’s coming out with a lot of confidence.
“I played well in the first set, but in the second set she started making more balls and getting very aggressive. I just tried to stay calm. It reminded me of the words of “This is a fight, just enjoy it, have fun, and wear it.” A show for everyone. ”
‘I’m finding my game again’ – Fernandes back in Hong Kong
And she put on a show that she did. Fernandes enters this match with wins over top seed Victoria Azarenka (retired), teenage prodigies Mira Andreva and Linda Fruviltova, and is looking to dominate Blinkova and avenge her straight-set loss in Bad Homburg this summer. I accomplished it. Fernandes hit 29 winners to Brinkova’s 17 and broke serve on four of nine break points.
Brinkova controlled only one break point in the match.
“I don’t want to create a jinx, but we’re getting close,” Fernandes said. “Slowly but surely, with each match I have grown, become more aggressive and scored more goals. The fans love it and I also appreciate the support from the fans. I love you. That encouraged me to keep going and keep playing.” That’s how I did it.
“Hopefully I can get back to a level that I can be proud of soon and be able to say this is what I’ve been working towards.”
In the second semifinal of the night, world No. 85 Sinakova defeated Martina Trevisan 6-4, 6-2 to advance to her second singles final of the season. During the summer, Sinakova won her fourth career singles title on the grass in Bad Homburg. On Sunday, she will try to win her first hard court title since Shenzhen in 2017.
Highlight: Sinakova easily defeats Trevisan
After winning the title in Bad Homburg, Sinakova struggled throughout the summer hard court season, but her Asian swing was her saving grace. In Ningbo, Sinakova won back-to-back matches for the first time since Bad Homburg, and in Hong Kong she lost just one set. En route to the Hong Kong final, Sinakova defeated Wang Shiyu, Kamila Rakimova, former champion Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Trevisan.
Fernandez and Sinakova have only faced off once. The match was the second round of Roland Garros in 2022 and the Canadian won 6-3, 6-2. A win on Sunday will give Sinakova her second title of the season. This is the first time since 2017 that a Czech player has won multiple singles titles in a season.
