The Soccer Drills That Shaped Leylah Fernandez's Court Game
Cut at seven and coached by her soccer-playing father on public Montreal courts, Leylah Fernandez built a left-handed game that out-thinks raw baseline power.
When Leylah Fernandez was seven years old in Montreal, a regional tennis development program dropped her from its roster. The assessment was blunt: coaches believed she was simply too small to develop the heavy baseline power required for modern professional tennis. Her father, Jorge Fernandez, refused to accept that verdict. Jorge was a former professional soccer player from Ecuador who had never coached tennis in his life, but he understood footwork, spatial angles, and athletic determination. He took his young daughter to public park courts in Montreal, opened coaching textbooks, and began inventing training sessions rooted in soccer agility drills.
At Joyful Take, we find stories like this irresistible because they show how unconventional thinking beats standard orthodoxies. When I examined her development records and career trajectory, what stood out was not merely her success as a Grand Slam finalist, but how every stroke in her repertoire still carries the distinct fingerprint of those public park drills. Her game proves that anticipation and court geometry can conquer pure physical height.
The Soccer Mindset on a Hard Court
Jorge Fernandez did not teach tennis the way traditional country club academies do. Instead of emphasizing wide, sweeping swings that rely on upper-body leverage, he focused entirely on lower-body agility, balance, and quick directional changes. He treated the tennis court like a miniature soccer pitch. On a soccer field, reading an opponent's hips and shoulders tells a defender where the pass is going long before the ball is kicked. Jorge applied that exact principle to baseline rallies.
He set up cones on municipal asphalt courts in Laval and Montreal, running Leylah and her younger sister Bianca through rapid lateral shuttle runs and footwork ladders. Speed replaced power. He taught her to step forward onto the baseline rather than retreat, meeting incoming groundstrokes at the earliest possible bounce. By catching the ball on the rise, Leylah used her opponents' own shot velocity against them, eliminating the need for a towering 6-foot frame.
Leylah Fernandez Career Overview
- Born
- September 6, 2002 (Montreal, Quebec, Canada)
- Plays
- Left-handed (two-handed backhand)
- Career High Singles Ranking
- WTA World No. 13
- Notable Singles Titles
- Monterrey Open (2021, 2022), Hong Kong Tennis Open (2023)
- Team Milestone
- 2023 Billie Jean King Cup Champion (Team Canada)
- Grand Slam Milestone
- 2021 US Open Singles Finalist; 2023 French Open Doubles Finalist
Family Sacrifices and Multicultural Roots
Behind Fernandez's on-court tenacity sits a family history of profound sacrifice and multicultural pride. Her father immigrated to Canada from Ecuador as a teenager, while her mother, Irene Exevea, was born in Toronto to immigrant parents from the Philippines. Her maternal grandmother arrived from Leyte, and her grandfather came from Ilocos Norte.
Funding an elite junior tennis career without major corporate sponsors placed immense financial strain on the household. When Leylah was around ten years old, her mother made the difficult decision to move to California to work and earn money to support the training costs, while Jorge stayed behind in Montreal to coach Leylah and Bianca. The family endured several years of physical separation, communicating across time zones while keeping their shared goal alive.
Canada has done so much for us, especially for my dad, for my grandparents. They never had it easy, but they fought for everything and all the opportunities that they got they did it two times more just for me and for my whole family.
Fernandez grew up fluent in English, French, and Spanish, but she frequently credits her Filipino extended family in Toronto for instilling her grounded perspective. During childhood summers, the family would pack into a car for a six-hour drive from Montreal to Toronto to gather with aunts, uncles, and grandparents. Her grandfather, an avid cook, prepared traditional meals like adobo and lumpia, filling modest living rooms with laughter and encouragement. Those gatherings reinforced the idea that success is a shared family endeavor.
The Unforgettable 2021 US Open Run
The wider tennis world discovered Fernandez's fighting spirit during the late summer of 2021 in New York. Just days before her 19th birthday, she entered the US Open unseeded and produced one of the most thrilling underdog runs in tournament history. Match after match, she stared down top-seeded champions on Arthur Ashe Stadium and dismantled them with poise.
| Round | Opponent | Opponent Seed | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Round of 32 | Naomi Osaka | No. 3 | 5-7, 7-6(2), 6-4 |
| Round of 16 | Angelique Kerber | No. 16 | 4-6, 7-6(5), 6-2 |
| Quarterfinals | Elina Svitolina | No. 5 | 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(5) |
| Semifinals | Aryna Sabalenka | No. 2 | 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-4 |
Every match went the distance. In each contest, Fernandez absorbed blistering 115-mph groundstrokes and used short, precise left-handed angles to send her opponents sprinting into the doubles alleys. When she fell behind, she smiled at her player box, reset her footwork, and stepped inside the baseline. Although she finished as runner-up in the final against Emma Raducanu, her fighting spirit won over fans across the globe.
Championship Milestones and Coaching Evolution
Fernandez proved that her 2021 run was no fluke by winning back-to-back WTA singles titles at the Monterrey Open in 2021 and 2022. In October 2023, she captured the Hong Kong Tennis Open title, showcasing her tactical maturity. One month later, in November 2023 in Seville, Spain, she led Canada to its first-ever Billie Jean King Cup championship, sweeping her singles matches and defeating Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-3 in the decisive final tie.
To continue refining her game on the WTA Tour, Fernandez adapted her team structure. While Jorge remains her foundational mentor, the family brought in veteran American coach Eric Hechtman, who previously guided Serena Williams and Venus Williams. The co-coaching arrangement allows Jorge to balance other family and tennis projects while giving Leylah fresh technical feedback during grueling tour swings.
When we watch Fernandez today, we see an athlete who carries her entire story onto the court. Every slice serve out wide, every quick step to intercept a ball early, and every bright post-match smile traces back to that seven-year-old girl in Montreal whose family chose belief over convention. She remains one of the most engaging and joyful competitors in professional sport.
Sources
Every factual claim above traces to one of these. Links open in a new tab.
- Leylah Annie Fernandez Biography
- Leylah Fernandez | Player Stats & Bio
- Leylah Fernandez's magical run to the 2021 US Open final
- Leylah Fernandez's rise built on family sacrifice and father's unconventional coaching
- Canada captures first-ever Billie Jean King Cup championship
- 'Gave me goosebumps': Fernandez soaks up support from Filipino Canadians
- Leylah Fernandez embraces Filipino roots and family support
- Leylah Fernandez adds experienced coach Eric Hechtman to team
