Leylah Annie Fernandez, the Canadian tennis professional, while in the press conference before the Miami Open came across a question that is everywhere. However, every player, regardless of their personal relationship with Barty, has spoken about her. The sudden decision of retirement has taken everyone by surprise.

Leylah Appreciates What Barty Has Done for Tennis

Barty is just 25. She is holding the ranking of no.1 for almost 120 weeks now, proving her potential. Lelah spoke about the same in the conference and said, “First of all it was very unexpected and surprising. Ashleigh, she’s an amazing player on and off the court. We are very sad to see her retire because tennis, the WTA, the tennis world, we need her.”

Leylah also addressed how her presence changes the atmosphere of the game by saying, “She brings excitement to the crowd on her matches.”

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The 19 year old, might be the next big thing and a fact that is obvious is every player draws inspiration from other players. However, the position they keep their inspiration at can be different. It can be a rival or an idol. For Leylah, Barty seems to have occupied the latter as she herself admitted, “I think I’m just happy for everything that she’s accomplished, and the great role model she is to not only the players but also to the next generation. I see how she works and how professional she is. I know what is my next step, what I need to do to hopefully achieve what she has done.”

Performance of Leylah Annie Fernandez up Till Now

Leylah Annie Fernandez did not have a great start to the year. She made her way up to the fourth round of Adelaide International. However, she didn’t perform well in the Australian Open as was dismissed from the tournament in the first round only.

However, she bounced back pretty fast and claimed Monterrey Open by defeating 20-year-old Colombian Maria Osorio Serrano. Although Leylah was performing well in Indian Wells, she lost her spot in the quarterfinals to Spanish professional Paula Badosa. However, in doubles, she climbed up to the semifinals.

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Further, her journey in the ongoing tournament for the singles title has ended. She incurred a defeat against Karolina Muchova, though she is yet to start her run in doubles of the Miami Open. Will she be able to claim the doubles trophy?