No major tournament compares to the US Open. The tide of people moving from one stadium to another, the often stifling heat of New York in late August, the noisy spectators as the players hear the Americans cheering on three pitches away, and of course, the Arthur -Ashe. The largest tennis stadium in the world, where athletes sometimes put on a show until late at night.
The feeling of stepping into the spotlight alone in an arena that can hold nearly 24,000 spectators, Leylah Fernandez experienced two years ago, in her sensational journey that led her to the match ultimate in New York.
It was on this huge stage that the little Quebecer, then 19 years old and 73rd in the world, overthrew the powerful Aryna Sabalenka against all odds in the semi-finals, which at the same time gave her a ticket to her first final in Grand Slam.
“Looks like there are millions of eyes watching us! Leylah said on Sunday when asked about her experience on the Arthur-Ashe. It’s a different challenge. It’s such an iconic stadium that sometimes you have to concentrate, imagine that you’re playing on a smaller pitch.”
The noise, but above all the dream
And it’s not just those eyes that watch: there are also those mouths, which whisper during points, which sometimes shout, even if the referee does everything possible to silence them. This applause, too, which stretches until the players are ready to serve, and even beyond.
These noises, they can bury the sound of the ball, pointed out a colleague at the original Lavalloise.
“As the players are very sensitive, basically, a little noise like that of a spectator dropping something can disturb us”, she says, to make people understand that we have to learn to reconcile with the ambient sound. .
“Sometimes it pushes us to hit harder, precisely because we want to hear the ball, but at times like these, we learn to trust our instincts above all,” also notes Leylah.
But while she enjoys playing on smaller courts — which remind her of where she started, she says — Fernandez will never scorn the chance to step onto the biggest court on the planet.
After all, the 67th in the world has often said it: she loves to put on a show on the biggest stages, in front of a lively crowd.
“It’s incredible [de jouer sur le Arthur-Ashe], she repeated. It’s always been a dream for me, so I try to take every opportunity.”
Big Apple Traffic
However, it is rather on the Grandstand (a stadium which can still hold 8,000 people) that Leylah Fernandez will make her New York comeback on Tuesday, at 11 a.m., against the Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova, 22nd favorite.
Leylah arrived in New York on Friday, the day after her quarter-final loss in Cleveland. On Sunday, she braved the Big Apple traffic not only to meet the media, but also to train with American Peyton Stearns.
Because this is another New York peculiarity: this heavy traffic between Manhattan, where the majority of players live, and Queens, where the last major tournament of the season takes place.
It often forces athletes to change their schedule, starting earlier in order to get to the venue on time, Leylah said.
Well, that won’t make anyone cry, of course. But Leylah doesn’t flinch either. On the contrary: two years after going to the final in New York, the young player has “many good memories” of this great epic.
“But hey, these are now memories,” she adds, smirking, to let it be understood that she still wants to add other great victories on the Arthur-Ashe to her list.
2023-08-27 21:05:55
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