Guided by the Williams sisters’ former coach, Leylah Annie Fernandez clinches first title of the season

Leylah Annie Fernandez’s Singapore success feels like it could be a turning point.

The two-time Olympian had dropped to her lowest ranking in a year this July after three consecutive first-round Grand Slam exits. But with victory at the Singapore Tennis Open, the Canadian rises five places to 26th in the world rankings, after a run that included a victory over French Open champion Mirra Andreeva.

She went on to beat Australia’s Talia Gibson 7-5, 6-0 in the final for the sixth singles title of her career in the WTA 500 tournament.

“This gives me a lot of confidence, but I do know that the very next day I have to start from zero,” Fernandez said after her triumph in Singapore on Sunday (27 September), ahead of playing in the China Open this week in Beijing.

“It's just going to get tougher from here on out. But seeing that I was able to go through this type of adversity this week gives me the belief that I can do it again.”

So, what has changed in the past two months? One answer is that Fernandez acquired a second coach in Eric Hechtman, who formerly worked with Olympic champions Serena and Venus Williams.

He joins her father and coach, Jorge Fernandez, in the former US Open finalist's team. Though not present in Singapore, Hechtman has helped bring the 24-year-old a new lease of life going into the final stretch of the season.

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Leylah Fernandez, learning from coach Hechtman and ‘sister’ Venus

Fernandez's father Jorge, who was once a semi-professional footballer, reached out to Hechtman following Wimbledon. The pair were keen to work together, which was aided by their close proximity to each other in Miami.

After a successful start to their collaboration, Hechtman plans to join Fernandez in person for the final few weeks of the Asian Swing to see out the season.

“It works out well for both of us, because her dad's going to be able to do weeks and I'm going to be able to do weeks, and it makes the split a little easy,” Hechtman said to Match Point Canada.

“Leylah has that athleticism, movement on the court to become not just an elite offensive player, but an elite defender. I saw those things, [and] I'm like, ‘Hey, this girl should be top 10, right?’”

Fernandez and Hechtman also share a common connection to Venus Williams; Fernandez played doubles with the seven-time major singles champion last year and maintains a close bond with her honorary “older sister”, while Hechtman was her coach from 2019 to 2023.

“Playing with Venus was such a treat," Fernandez said of the four-time Olympic champion in an interview with Olympics.com. "She is a legend. Everything that she has accomplished, from the very beginning when she was a teenager to all the way now, is so beautiful. It's such a motivating factor.

“I see her team sometimes watching my matches and that gives me a lot of happiness. It's so cool that they included me in their little group now. Seeing her on tour smiling like a big kid is so fun. Hopefully we do get an opportunity to play again together.”

Taking a leaf out of the Williams’ book is never a bad idea. For Fernandez, it could also prove to be the catalyst needed to break into the world’s top 10 and build the bricks for a fruitful 2027 campaign.

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