Emma Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez: These are the teenagers in the US Open final

Teenage fever is rife in New York. On the 20th anniversary of 9/11, two finalists face each other in the final of the US Open on Saturday who had not even seen the light of day on September 11, 2001. Leylah Fernandez challenges Emma Raducanu – who are the two youngsters?

Emma Raducanu is in the final of the US Open

Emma Raducanu set a record in New York: never before has a qualifier reached the finals in New York – until Emma Raducanu came. The 18-year-old British woman only entered the tennis stage in June of this year when she made her first appearance on the WTA tour in Nottingham and has since experienced a meteoric rise. But the 18-year-old also knows how to convince outside of the tennis court. At the beginning of the year she completed her A-Level in London, the highest school leaving certificate in Great Britain, comparable to the Abitur – and achieved top grades in math and economics. “I think my parents think I’m crazy,” said Raducanu in an interview with the WTA. She wouldn’t accept anything other than top marks, but she also thinks that those around her expect the same from her. That’s why she worked so hard to get these grades. “I don’t know what I’ll do with the graduation yet, but I’ve done my part and done my best,” said Raducanu. The success of her student has not gone unnoticed by Newstead Wood School in south-east London. In the semifinals, the school tweeted the intermediate results and highlight videos non-stop. “We are so proud of Emma Raducanu’s success at the US Open,” wrote the girls’ school on Friday morning on their homepage, which was also visited by Olympic medalist Dina Asher-Smith and actress Gemma Chan (“Crazy Rich”).

With her final opponent Leylah Fernandez, Raducanu not only has the year 2002 in common, but also a multicultural background: Born in Toronto, Raducanu emigrated to London with her family at the age of two. Her father Ian is from Romania and her mother Renee was born in China. Her Twitter and Instagram biography reads: “London | Toronto | Bucharest | Shenyang” – a reference to her hometown, her birthplace and the birthplaces of her parents.

Canadian Leylah Fernandez is her opponent

Every year Raducanu travels to Bucharest several times to visit her grandmother. To be cooked by her is one of the highlights of the year according to the “South China Morning Post”. Raducanu, who speaks fluent Mandarin, also visits Shenyang every year.

Canada as a great tennis nation? A few years ago this was not expected. With Félix Auger-Aliassime and Leylah Fernandez, there are now two Canadian professionals in the US Open finals. While Auger-Aliassime was one of the broader favorites among the men, Fernandez, along with Raducanu, is the great discovery of the tournament and eliminated Germany’s top player Angelique Kerber, among others. The left-hander, who celebrated her 19th birthday in early September, grew up in Montreal. Her father Jorge is from Ecuador, her mother is Canadian with Filipino roots.

Sport is in the 19-year-old’s genes. Her father Jorge was a professional soccer player, her younger sister Bianca Jolie is also considered a great tennis talent. Her older sister Jodeci has since taken a different path and works as a dentist. She herself counts her sisters and mother among the people who have the greatest influence on her life, wrote Fernandez in a post on Instagram in the spring, where she rarely gives insights into her private life. In doing so, she also demonstrated her talent for languages: Fernandez speaks English, French and Spanish fluently.

sources: , ,