Helping Hands: Leylah Fernandez finds inspiration in Simona Halep

When Simona Halep came to Toronto in 2019 looking to play some doubles, one name jumped out on a list of potential partners. “I picked Leylah because I heard that she’s very ambitious,” Halep said at the time. “And she just won the [junior] French Open, and I remembered that I did that 10 years ago.” Leylah Fernandez was still just 16 years old, and couldn’t stop smiling when she found out she would soon take the court with the reigning Wimbledon champion. “She is very smiley,” Halep recalled at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in April. “She’s smiling all the time.” The Canadian teenager has had plenty of reason to smile since transitioning to tour life. Months after partnering Halep at her home tournament, Fernandez reached her first WTA final in Acapulco. She ended last season with a third-round French Open finish and her Top 100 debut. And her physical and mental improvements were on display early in 2021, when she at last took home her first title, in Monterrey.

“Five minutes after the point was done, everyone was starting to come on court with the trophies. I sat down, took a few deep breaths, and I realized I’d won,” said the soft-spoken Fernandez. “I was most nervous at match point. I tried to calm myself, think about the moment and try to execute my plan as best I can.” The youngster’s calm demeanor has long been a hallmark of her game, and it even impressed Halep when they took on an experienced doubles team in Nicole Melichar and Kveta Peschke. “I was honestly really nervous at the beginning,” Fernandez said, “but she really calmed me down, just saying that, ‘Whatever you want to talk about, just tell [me], and that helped me.” “I have to learn how I calmed her down,” Halep added, “because I need to calm down myself sometimes!”

Listed at 5’6”, Fernandez is the same height as Halep, and will likely face similar challenges competing with the game’s taller and more naturally powerful players. While the Romanian has used impeccable baseline precision to win a pair of Slams, Fernandez can open the court with her lefty swings, and aims to move forward more often. The 29-year-old Halep remembers being her mentee’s age, when she, too, looked up to the game’s top players. That dynamic flipped when she reached her first Grand Slam final, at Roland Garros in 2014, and Halep predicts the 19-year-old’s game will continue to evolve in kind. She has also kept an eye on the Canadian’s progress since their fateful doubles collaboration—occasionally even catching up at tournaments.

“What impressed me back then is how fast she can hit, how fast she can be with her hands,” Halep said in Stuttgart. “Her ball is quite heavy, as well. “She’s doing a great job. She’s still young, a baby! So, she’s going to be around for a long time, I’m sure.” Averse to give the next generation too much advice, the Romanian encouraged Fernandez to embark on her WTA journey with the same sense of self-assurance as when they teamed up in Canada. Coming from a fellow undersized player who so effectively unlocks her best tennis when full of belief, it’s advice that can undoubtedly assist Fernandez, and keep her smiling on the court for years to come. “Just be confident that you’re there and you feel the game at the highest level,” Halep said. “It’s a good thing. It’s a good start. So, you have everything to do well in tennis, so you know what you’re doing.”