Canada’s Leylah Fernandez into second round at NBO

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TORONTO — Leylah Fernandez handled a curveball in advancing to the second round of the National Bank Open.

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The Laval, Que., product defeated Japan’s Nao Hibino 6-3, 5-7, 6-1 to move on at Canada’s national tennis championship Wednesday.

Fernandez, the tournament’s 15th seed, was originally supposed to face China’s Zhang Shuai, but the 63rd-ranked player on the WTA Tour withdrew because of a viral illness and was replaced by Hibino on short notice.

The 21-year-old Canadian, who entered with a 3-1 record against Hibino, blasted her second ace of the match to close out the first set.

Fernandez, ranked 25th in the world, was serving for the match and two points away from victory before Hibino (No. 151) pushed back to take the second set 7-5.

Fernandez went up an early break in the third set to take a 2-1 lead after digging out of a 30-0 hole on serve in the previous game.

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She then broke the Japanese player again with a sliced drop shot for a 4-1 lead before securing a third break to seal the win and book a meeting with qualifier Ashlyn Krueger (No. 82) of the U.S. in the second round Thursday.

The pair’s only head-to-head came in June on grass at the Rothesay International when the Canadian picked up an emphatic 6-2, 6-1 victory.

The U.S. Open finalist in 2021, Fernandez made the third round of last year’s NBO in Montreal as a wild card before falling to qualifier Danielle Collins 6-2, 6-3.

Marina Stakusic of Mississauga, Ont., joined her compatriot in the second round after the 19-year-old came back to defeat Russia’s Erika Andreeva 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-4 in her first NBO main-draw appearance.

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Next up for Stakusic, who entered the week ranked 160th in the world, is Taylor Townsend.

The 71st-ranked American lost in qualifying, but earned a spot in the women’s bracket as an injury replacement before first-round opponent and No. 16 seed Dayana Yastremska retired in the second set with Townsend up 6-3, 3-1 on Tuesday.

Vancouver’s Rebecca Marino lost her first-round match 6-3, 6-4 to Poland’s Magda Linette.

In other notable early action at the US$3.2-million event that saw a boatload of withdrawals last week, including the top-ranked Iga Swiatek, former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka of Japan defeated No. 9 seed Ons Jabeur of Tunisia 6-3, 6-1.

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Defending champion Jessica Pegula of the U.S. was set to play under the lights later Wednesday after getting a bye to the second round.

The men’s event is being played in Montreal.

Mississauga’s Bianca Andreescu — the first Canadian to win the event in 55 years back in 2019 — was eliminated Tuesday night after losing her first-round match 0-6, 6-3, 6-4 to Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko.

Stakusic, who grew up attending the Toronto leg of the event and got a spot in the draw as a wild card, envisioned herself on this stage as a kid.

“It was really nice to see everybody cheering,” she said. “It was amazing just to have the support.”

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