(Eastbourne) Leylah Annie Fernandez reached the final four of the Eastbourne grass tournament on Thursday morning after crushing Briton Harriet Dart 6-2, 6-1.
It was the first duel between the two players in their NHL careers, and it ended after just 67 minutes on British pitch.
Fernandez, the 30th racket in the world, will face in the semi-finals of this preparatory tournament for Wimbledon the winner of the duel between the American Madison Keys, fourth seed in the tournament, and the Czech Karolina Muchova.
The Quebecer, who covets a first title in 2024 and a fourth in her professional career, dominated her opponent in the service – winning 80.8% of the points with her first ball. She also recorded two aces, compared to just one for Dart, the 105th-ranked player in the world.
The 21-year-old from Laval was also more opportunistic than her rival, having converted five of her seven break points. Dart, in comparison, delighted the serve of the representative of the maple leaf on her only occasion of the match.
On the other hand, Ontario’s Marina Stakusic secured her ticket to the main draw of Wimbledon by defeating Briton Amarni Banks 6-3, 6-0 in the third and final round of qualifying.
Stakusic, ranked 164th in the world, will therefore be taking part in her first career Grand Slam tournament, after beating French players Carole Monnet and Chloé Paquet in the previous two rounds.
The draw for the men’s and women’s draws will take place on Friday morning at the All England Club.
