'We love the energy': Leylah Fernandez hopes World Cup sea of red extends to Canada's National Bank Open

TORONTO – Leylah Fernandez knows what it's like to capture the imagination of Canadian fans.

She's someone who's reached a US Open final and a French Open quarterfinal. She has also represented Canada at the Olympics and helped lead the nation to a Billie Jean King Cup title for the first time in history.

Fernandez has seen how impactful Canadian support can be for tennis players and so wasn't surprised when she saw how the sea of red for the men's Canadian national soccer team spurred them on to their furthest advancement at the FIFA World Cup.

"I want to see more Canadian fans coming and cheering us on, we love the energy and in my experience that has always brought out the best in us," Fernandez said in an exclusive interview with Yahoo Canada. "It's an opportunity to show we're not just a hockey nation but also can be a soccer nation and tennis nation."

Tennis Canada, with the support of Canada Soccer, is currently running a Wear Red Again campaign for the National Bank Open (NBO), encouraging fans to wear red to support Canadians at the tournament. We're accustomed to seeing it in the Billie Jean King Cup and on the men's side with the Davis Cup, but not as much at the NBO.

Fans can get a limited-edition keepsake available on-site if wearing red or purchase an exclusive "Red Again" jersey while supplies last.

Fernandez had in fact recorded a video message of support for the Canadian men's soccer team and set up her training schedule around their matches during the FIFA tournament. With Ecuadorian roots on her father's side, Fernandez accounted for their matches, too. In a typical Canadian immigrant experience, she had red on for Canada's matches and yellow when Ecuador played.

There was plenty of banter within her team through the highs of her Spanish hitting partner watching Spain win it all and an Italian hitting partner who didn't get to see his team at all.

"We'd trash talk with other players as well because the tennis tour is so international," Fernandez said. "We'd see so many different jerseys and seeing soccer bring so many countries together so all the banter is just fun and games."

On the tennis court, it's been a trying year for Fernandez. She lost in the first round of the Australian Open, French Open, and Wimbledon and is now trying to finish her season on a high with the resumption of the hard court season. Fernandez opened with a defeat to Alexandra Eala in the first round of the Washington Open, where she was the defending champion. Eala went on to win the tournament.

Fernandez is ranked 34th in the WTA rankings now after having started the year 22nd.

"With all the difficulties I've faced and the moments of doubt as well as lack of self confidence, I never threw in the towel," Fernandez reflected. "I always got back on court and thought about what I need to work on next. I always try to find solutions with my coach, with my team, and sometimes the solution could be as simple as taking a couple days break or going for a run outside.

"I'm very proud of myself that I never threw in the towel and always got back on my feet. The help of my team has definitely made it easier."

That team had a recent evolution as Eric Hechtman joined the fold alongside Fernandez's coach and father Jorge Fernandez who has been coaching her since childhood. Hechtman has previously coached both Serena and Venus Williams – who Fernandez has recently played doubles with. Hechtman has also been a hitting partner for Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

"It's been a few years that my dad and I, we've been talking about adding another coach to help out, to share the weeks with him," Fernandez explained. "The first reason was because my dad also has other projects. He also wants to help out my sister a little bit more, and then another player, Jaden, so he can't be in three places all at once. We've been patient, we've been looking, we've been kind of talking with different coaches, seeing which one would be the right fit.

"Speaking with Eric, we liked how his mentality and the game style seems to align a lot with our mentality and game style."

Fernandez continues to maintain big goals as any top athlete would. That run to the final of the US Open was seven years ago, and so the time has come to find a new way to get back to that elite level.

There's no better way for her than finding a rhythm at her home event, the National Bank Open. She's had a chance to reconnect with family and friends, check out the Toronto Tempo for the first time, and threw out the first pitch at the Blue Jays game on Friday. With the off-court cup filled, she hopes to spur on more red fever with an on-court cup.

"It would probably be one of the biggest titles, best memory, best tournament," Fernandez said on what winning her home tournament would mean.

"It's where I grew up, it's a tournament that I first watched growing up as a young kid, so it would mean a lot. It's up there in my goals and dreams. I always want to win a Grand Slam, be number one in the world, but also winning the NBO is a special occasion where not many people, athletes, can say that, not only they played their favorite sport, but they get to play at home and then also get to win a title at home."

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