Quebecer Leylah Annie Fernandez lost in the first round of the San Diego tennis tournament.
Tuesday evening, she lost in three sets of 6-3, 5-7 and 6-2 against the Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia. The event’s seventh seed and 20th-ranked player in the world triumphed in two hours and 37 minutes.
Fernandez, 74th in the WTA rankings, struggled when in possession. She committed 12 double faults and succeeded in only 50% of her first service attempts. She was also the victim of seven damages. Her rival was broken four times.
Fernandez had his best moments in the second round, showing great resilience. She notably faced a match point, while she was serving at the 10th point.
This is the second consecutive tournament where Fernandez has had to leave in her first outing, having suffered a curtain-raising defeat at the US Open.
In the second round in San Diego, Haddad Maia will face the Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk. The 45th player in the world defeated Poland’s Magda Linette in two sets of 6-2, 7-6(5) in the first stage of the competition.