Leylah Fernandez of Canada defeated Magda Linette of Poland in the first round of the French Open

Published May 28, 2023 12:30 PM ET

Updated May 28, 2023 3:04 PM ET

Leylah Fernandez of Canada waves to the crowd after defeating Ysaline Bonaventure of Belgium during the Billie Jean King Cup qualifier singles match, in Vancouver, on Saturday, April 15, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck


PARIS — Canadian Leylah Fernandez cruised into the second round of the French Open on Sunday, beating Magda Linette of Poland 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 in her first round match.

Fernandez now leads the head-to-head 2-1, having also beaten Linette in three sets in the first round of Roland-Garros back in 2020. Fernandez entered the tournament ranked 49th in the WTA rankings, while Linette was ranked 21st.

The 20-year-old from Laval, Que., overcame some difficulties with her serve, including problems with her ball, to secure the victory. He committed nine double faults and hit only two aces throughout the game.

But she managed to create 13 breakpoint opportunities and convert three, including one late in the third set to give her a 5-3 lead.

In the first set, Fernandez quickly found himself falling behind when Linette broke in the third game and took a 2-1 lead. Fernandez responded by breaking Linette’s serve twice to take the set.

Fernandez also had a poor start to the second set, conceding the first three games before losing the set.

In the decider, Fernandez committed only one double fault and won 12 of 15 second serve points.

Fernandez, who reached the quarter-finals of the French Open last year, is scheduled to face Denmark’s Clara Tauson in the next round. Tauson beat Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus 6-2, 6-0, in the first round.

Three Canadians were in action on Monday. Felix Auger-Aliassime of Montreal takes on Fabio Fognini of Italy, Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., faces Brandon Nakashima of America, and Rebecca Marino of Vancouver takes on Diana Shnaider of Russia.

Bianca Andreescu of Toronto will open her tournament on Tuesday against Victoria Azarenka of Belarus.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on May 28, 2023.

Hadwin Floyd

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