Two years ago, the Prime Minister reported after the final, this time his turn was earlier.
"Big day for Canadian tennis," wrote Justin Trudeau, "Congratulations to Leylah Fernandez and all the best for Felix Auger-Aliassime (FAA)." It is quite possible that the head of government and millions of viewers around the world will be out of their chairs with excitement catapulted when he saw Fernandez win again in great form at the US Open.
And the good wishes did not go unheard either;
a few hours later the FAA also landed in the semifinals and said proudly and almost a little touched: “I never thought that such a day would come.
A little girl and boy from Montreal playing in the US Open semifinals.
But wouldn't it be fantastic if we both made it to the final? "
Who wants to rule out anything in this rousing, turbulent tournament?
After the victories over Naomi Osaka and Angelique Kerber, Leylah Fernandez struck again, this time against number five, Elina Switolina (6: 3, 3: 6, 7: 6).
Especially in the third movement it cracked like fireworks;
Switolina tried everything, but the little one on the other side could not be shaken.
And the Canadian parallels with the recent past are remarkable. In 2019 Bianca Andreescu stormed first into the final and after beating Serena Williams to the title; she was 19 years old, too, she didn't have much experience with Grand Slam tournaments either, and she, too, made up for the lack of experience with a double dose of courage and determination. At that time, the country on the other side of the Niagara Falls celebrated the first Canadian single title at a Grand Slam tournament.
After the win against Switolina, Leylah Fernandez joked that maybe the good maple syrup was to blame for the Canadian victories. Later she looked at the question a little more seriously and said: “I think we are all hungry to change the world of tennis. We want to have an influence, and this tournament shows how well we can adapt to everything. ”In the world rankings she will climb to at least 36th place after the US Open - it is in a way the kind of speed climbing that was recently shown at the Olympic Play celebrated its premiere - if she also wins the semi-finals against Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus), there are a few more steps to go.
The biggest jump so far, however, was made by 18-year-old Briton Emma Raducanu, regardless of victory or defeat in the quarter-finals on Wednesday against Belinda Bencic, the Olympic champion from Switzerland. The 21-year-old Felix Auger-Aliassime only needs one win to land in the top ten for the first time. In the quarter-finals he won comparatively quickly because the Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz gave up at the beginning of the second set with pain in the adductors, which was certainly also a consequence of the two five-set games in the previous rounds.
The Canadian is now the first male representative of a 2000 class in the semifinals of a Grand Slam tournament, but the trend was clear. At 18, he was the youngest player to reach the top 25 in 20 years, but after that he was stuck for a while. He has sometimes become a little impatient, says the "FAA" and first had to learn to accept defeat.