Photo: Elsa/Getty (2); Sarah Stier/Getty
There’s a teen takeover happening at the 2021 US Open.
Before the start of this year’s tournament at Flushing Meadows, the biggest names in tennis, including Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal as well as Serena and Venus Williams, announced their withdrawals due to injuries.
In their absence, three teens have captured the spotlight with their impressive matches, especially Leylah Fernandez and Carlos Alcaraz who took down Naomi Osaka and Stefanos Tsitsipas, respectively.
Also, Britain’s Emma Raducanu is having a breakthrough season, joining her fellow teenagers in the fourth round for the first time.
“To have so many young players coming through is just really great for the game because it just shows how strong this next generation is,” Raducanu said during apost-match press conference. “I think we all inspire each other to play better. I wanted to join them in the second week as well, so that was an extra bit of motivation. They are very, very nice people. I’m very happy for them.”
These athletes may only be in their late teens but their game is already big. Below is what to know about each star.
Emma Raducanu
The 18-year-old was born in Canada to a Romanian father and Chinese mother and moved to London when she was 2 years old.
This year, Raducanu, who started playing tennis at age 5, became the first debuting British woman in 42 years to make the fourth round of Wimbledon, where she had to retire after experiencing a panic attack against Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic in the round of 16.
“Personally, I am surprised that I’m here,” shesaidafter a recent match. “I didn’t expect it. I knew I was doing a lot of great work that would pay off someday, but you never know when. I’m super appreciative of the moment.”
She’s quickly become a rising sports star, even garnering aBritishVogueprofile in which she spoke about her confidence in tennis.
“I think the confidence comes from just inner belief,” Raducanu said. “My mum comes from a Chinese background, they have very good self-belief. It’s not necessarily about telling everyone how good you are, but it’s about believing it within yourself. I really respect that about the culture.”
The athlete added, “I was a very shy little girl who didn’t talk much at all. And through playing sport, and having to be bold on the court and fearless and fight, it’s given me inner strength. If you have that, then you can really achieve whatever you want.”
For the quarterfinal match, Raducanu defeated Olympic gold medalist Belinda Bencic from Switzerland and will move forward in her first-ever semifinals.
Leylah Fernandez
Fernandez turned 19 on Monday and was born in Montreal to a Filipina-Canadian mother and Ecuadorian father, who was a former soccer player and now his daughter’s coach.
The Canadian athlete defeated Germany’s Angelique Kerber in the round of 16, Osaka in the third round, Kaia Kanepi of Estonia in the second round, and Croatia’s Ana Konjuh.
Fernandez, who competed in the Tokyo Olympics for Canada, had to play three qualifiers to make the main draw and started the year ranked No. 338 in the world. Now, the young star — who had never previously been past the third round at a Grand Slam — is projected to crack the top 100.
“I did have to pinch myself a little bit to see that it actually happened, but I knew that my tennis, my level of tennis is there,” she said during apost-match press conference. “It’s just a moment of time, opportunity, and I’m glad that I was able to get this opportunity now and that I was able to showcase what I can do in front of these players.”
Fernandez, who speaks English, French and Spanish, added, “Even if I would have lost, I would have been proud of myself with the way that I played, the way that I fought. I was lucky enough to get the win today and just getting this experience, it’s my first quarterfinals in a Grand Slam. I’m just going to enjoy it at 100 percent, and tomorrow is going to be a new day.”
Fernandez upset Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina, who is fifth-ranked, in the quarterfinal.
“My dad told me so many things, but today he told me to have fun, fight for every ball, fight for every point. Today is your first quarterfinals, don’t make it your last. Don’t make it your last over here. Fight for your dream,” Fernandez said after her quarterfinal victory.
Carlos Alcaraz
The 18-year-old from Spain defeated Germany’s Peter Gojowczyk in the round of 16, Tsitsipas in the third round, France’s Arthur Rinderknech in the second round and Britain’s Cameron Norrie in the opening round. Alcaraz lost to Canada’s Felix Auger Aliassime in the quarterfinals.
Alcaraz became the youngest man to beat a top-three player at the US Open and the youngest player in the Open era to reach the quarterfinals.
“I’m super excited to be in my first second week in the Grand Slam, so it’s amazing for me,” he said during apost-match press conference. “It’s a dream come true. It’s really tough to play these kind of matches, to play fifth sets. I hope to play more second weeks, to play more quarterfinals of Grand Slams. I didn’t expect to play quarterfinals here. So I think it’s a really good performance from me in these matches.”
“Carlos is a player that likes to be very aggressive. Since I met him when he was 14, 15, I knew of his potential, about his level,” Ferrero toldUSOpen.org. “But to be that aggressive, you have to control yourself and be able to manage all the shots that you’ve got. That’s not easy.”
Alcaraz’s coach added, “He’s starting to manage all these things on the court. Off court, he’s still 18 years old and he needs to get more mature, to control his emotions out there, to control when to go with 100 percent of his potential or when to go 80 percent or sometimes play with a lot more spin or more flat. He’s on the way to putting all these kinds of things in order, but I think he’s in a good way to do it.”
Nadal raved about Alcaraz in May,telling reporters: “He has a lot of potential. He already has a great level of tennis, but I really believe that he’s going to be a fantastic player in the near future. When somebody at his age is able to do the things that he’s doing, it’s because you have something special. At the same time, he’s humble enough to keep working. He’s passionate about the game. I really believe that he’s a complete player. He’s brave, he’s able to go to the net very often. Great forehand, great backhand. He needs to improve his serve a little bit, but he’s just 18, so he has plenty of time. I mean, when you make a salad and you are putting ingredients inside the salad, he has plenty of ingredients to become a great player.”
source: people.com
