In a surprising turn of events, Canada’s Leylah Fernandez was ousted from the Monterey Open after a tough battle against Slovakia’s Rebecca Sramkova, concluding with a scoreline of 6-2, 3-6, 2-6 on Wednesday.
The promising 22-year-old from Laval, Quebec, started strong in the round-of-16 clash, dominating her first serve with a remarkable 64.3 percent success rate in the opening set.
However, Sramkova made a stunning comeback, converting all five break points available to her in the following two sets to clinch the match after an intense two hours and nine minutes.
Fernandez, who recently claimed victory at the Washington Open, entered the hardcourt WTA 500 tournament as the seventh seed, aiming to add to her impressive legacy as a two-time champion here.
Despite her Washington triumph, Fernandez encountered setbacks with consecutive first-round exits at both the National Bank Open in Montreal and the Cincinnati Open.
On a positive note, Canadian duo Gabriela Dabrowski and her doubles partner Erin Routliffe are still in contention at the Monterey Open, gearing up to face the Russian pair of Kamilla Rakhimova and Irina Khromacheva later on Wednesday.
