NBO Toronto Wednesday: Fernandez eases into third…

Leylah Annie Fernandez cruised into the third round of the National Bank Open on Wednesday, beating Renata Zarazua 6-2, 6-2 in front of a raucous home crowd on Centre Court at Sobey’s Stadium.

It was a routine victory for the world No. 34, as she only faced two break points and pressured Zarazua’s serve enough to earn five breaks in the straight-sets victory.

The 23-year-old Fernandez will now advance to battle fifth seed Mirra Andreeva in the third round. Andreeva is coming off a straight-sets win over Karolina Pliskova on Wednesday.

Fernandez appeared to grab the momentum quickly with an early break of Zarazua’s serve to take a 2-0 lead. However, the 28-year-old Mexican would even the odds in the next game, breaking Fernandez right back and consolidating to put the match back on even footing. The Canadian once again grabbed control of the set with her second break of the match, thanks to multiple unforced errors from a visibly frustrated Zarazua. This time, Fernandez would keep up the pressure, finishing off the set with a hold and yet another break to close out an impressive first set.

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The Canadian put herself in prime position to finish the match midway through the second set, as she completed her fourth break to go up 4-2. Fernandez would have no trouble finishing off the match from there, punctuating the impressive victory with her fifth break of the match in a game where she rallied back from 40-0 down.

Zarazua entered the match in good form, having reached the semifinal in Memphis last week and having completed a mild upset of 47th-ranked Tamara Korpatsch in the first round on Monday.

Fernandez, on the other hand, entered Toronto looking to turn her hard-court fortunes around as she has yet to win two consecutive matches on the surface this season. The Lavalloise won her opening match in Washington last week to embark on her title defence but dropped her second match to eventual champion Alexandra Eala.

This is Fernandez’s seventh appearance at the NBO, but she has yet to advance past the round of 16, a stage she reached once in 2023.

Cross exits after second-round loss to Li

Kayla Cross’ journey at the National Bank Open in Toronto has come to an end following a second-round loss,7-6 (2), 6-3, to Ann Li on Wednesday afternoon.

The 21-year-old Canadian earned her first WTA main draw win on Monday with a first-round win over No. 69 Katie Boulter, her first win against a Top 100 player, and is projected to jump to a career high of No. 161 following the tournament.

With the straight-sets win, the 31st-ranked Li earns her first career win at the NBO and will advance to the third round to take on the winner of Wednesday's match between Daria Kasatkina and No. 2 Elena Rybakina.

Li appeared to be the shakier of the two to start the match, as she managed just 37 per cent of her first serves over her first two service games, though she was strong enough on her second serve that the Canadian was unable to take advantage.

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Cross was the first player to blink, conceding the first break of the match thanks to a pair of errant shots to go down 4-2. The American would quickly hold at love to consolidate and move one game away from clinching the set.

Cross would not go away quietly and finally capitalized on the 26-year-old Li’s shaky serve, earning her first break of the match to get things back on serve, at 5-4. The Canadian did not make it easy on herself, as she faced break and set point, but was able to finish off the gutsy hold to draw level.

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The set would head to a tiebreaker that Li would dominate, earning three mini breaks to take the first set 7-6(2).

The turning point of the second came in Cross’ third service game when Li broke her at love to go up 3-2. Up to that point, the two had gone shot-for-shot, including offsetting breaks to open the set. The more experienced Li would finish things off in quick order, finishing the match by breaking Cross one more time to seal the victory.

Read also: Full Results from Toronto on Wednesday

After winning in Guangzhou and reaching the finals in Cleveland and Singapore last season, Li had struggled on hard courts in 2026, entering Wednesday’s matchup with a 6-10 record on the surface.

Cross earned her way into the National Bank Open after securing the Road to the NBO wildcard by winning the title at the W75 event in Granby.

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Feature Photo: Mark Blinch/Wick Photography for National Bank Open

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