Leylah Fernandez ousted in Miami Open 3rd round by world No. 5 Jessica Pegula
Canada’s Leylah Fernandez fell 7-5, 6-4 to Jessica Pegula of the United States in third-round action at the Miami Open on Sunday.
The Laval, Que., native committed four double faults, won 58.6 per cent of her first-serve points and broke on three of her nine opportunities. Each player had one ace.
Pegula, ranked fifth in the world, only had one double fault and won 70.5 per cent of her first-serve points, while breaking on five of her 13 chances.
She has reached the Miami Open semifinals for the last two years.
The 35th-ranked Fernandez advanced after a 6-4, 6-2 second-round win over Colombia’s Emiliana Arango on Saturday.
WATCH l Fernandez commits 4 double faults in 3rd-round loss:
Canada’s Leylah Annie Fernandez was defeated Sunday at the Miami Open Sunday by American Jessica Pegula in straight sets 7-5, 6-4.
On the men’s side, Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., also lost 6-3, 7-6 (7) to Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi in a third-round match later Sunday.
Up 7-6 with a chance to push the match to a third set in the tiebreaker, Shapovalov gave up three straight points to drop the match in one hour 39 minutes. The match had a short delay due to rain.
In women’s doubles action, Ottawa’s Gabriela Dabrowski and New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe defeated Japan’s Miyu Kato and Indonesia’s Aldila Sutjiadi 6-4, 6-4 in second-round play.
WATCH l Shapovalov falls to Arnaldi:
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Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi beats Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., 6-3, 7-6 (7) and advances to the fourth round of the Miami Open.
Gauff has eyes on winning trophy at home
Third-ranked Coco Gauff came from behind in the first set to beat Oceane Dodin 6-4, 6-0 and advance to the fourth round for the second time in her career.
Gauff won 10 straight games after Dodin took a 4-2 lead in the opening set, thanks partly to nine double-faults by Dodin at critical moments.
Gauff has just one loss in her past 23 matches in the United States. That defeat came against Maria Sakkari at Indian Wells earlier this month.
Gauff, who turned 20 on March 13, is the youngest American player to hold a top three seed at Miami. The reigning U.S. Open champion, who is from South Florida, attended the event growing up and said capturing a title there would be special.
“It would be really cool to win here at home,” said Gauff, who was born in Delray Beach, Fla. “I think the best part about winning here is just being able to drive home with the trophy and not have to fly and pack. … And I’m a Dolphins fan, so maybe if I win here they can win another trophy at the Super Bowl.”
Gauff will face No. 27 Caroline Garcia, who defeated Naomi Osaka 7-6 (4), 7-5 on Sunday in a match in which the pair combined for 28 aces. Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, came up short despite playing some of her best tennis of the season in Miami. She beat 17th-ranked Elina Svitolina 6-2, 7-6 (5) on Saturday, which was her second win over a top-20 opponent in her previous four matches.
