Quebecer Leylah Fernandez is defeated in the second round in Toronto

TORONTO — Quebecer Leylah Fernandez was defeated in the second round at the National Bank Open in Toronto.

Brazil’s Beatriz Haddad Maia, 24th in the world, upset the 13th seed 7-6(4), 6-1.

Maia had the upper hand 4-2 for breaks and 5-1 for aces, winning in 98 minutes.

The Brazilian will have a heavy task in the third round, when she will play against the favorite Iga Swiatek.

Fernandez was playing in his first tournament after missing two months with a broken right foot.

The score was 3-3 in the deadlock, after which Maia took control with a winner, an unforced error from her rival and a spike, in that order.

Maia raced to victory after leading 3-0 in the second set.

Later, in doubles, Fernandez and her sister Bianca lost to Alexa Guarachi and Andreja Klepac, 6-1 and 6-2.

« It’s not easy going through two losses, » said Leylah Fernandez. I am still happy to have resumed competition, to have been able to test the foot and (the whole) body. Physically, I feel very good.”

Williams played his last game in Canada

Legendary Serena Williams lost to Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic 6-2, 6-4 in the second round.

Williams, who turns 41 in September, announced his intention to retire at the end of the season on Tuesday.

She received three standing ovations before the duel against Bencic, which was sold out. The 12,500 Canadian fans heavily favored Williams.

Bencic, the 12th seed, said after the game that she was always honored to play against Williams and that Wednesday night belongs entirely to the American.

Williams, a 23-tournament high-profile champion, is set to end her career after the U.S. Open, which begins Aug. 29.

Andreescu, the last Canadian in the running

Bianca Andreescu ended the evening in style for the fans in Toronto. The Ontarian took the measure of the French Alizé Cornet 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 and obtained her ticket for the round of 16.

Andreescu won the event in 2019, the last time it was held in Toronto. She had prevailed against Williams to be crowned champion.

Italy’s Camila Giorgi continued her title defense by defeating Belgium’s Elise Mertens 6-3, 7-5, in the second round.

Giorgi, who triumphed in Montreal in 2021, needed 92 minutes to defeat her rival ranked 37th in the world.

Mertens was opportunistic, taking advantage of each of the three break points she got. However, she was the victim of five breaks of service during the game.

Ranked 29th in the world, Giorgi will face in the next round Jessica Pegula, who defeated fellow American, Asia Muhammad.

Swiatek made short work of Australian Ajla Tomljanovic. The Pole won 6-1, 6-2 in 64 minutes.

Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit, seeded second, was dismissed 6-4, 6-4 by Jill Teichmann, 21st in the world.

Teichmann’s next rival will be Simona Halep, the 15th seed and winner of two major tournaments.

It’s also the end in Toronto for Ons Jabeur, the fifth seed and runner-up at Wimbledon this year. She retired with China’s Qinwen Zheng leading 6-1, 2-1.

American Coco Gauff struggled for two hours and 49 minutes before beating Kazakh Elena Rybakina 6-4, 6-7 (8), 7-6 (3).

Both players multiplied powerful shots, but Rybakina was ultimately handicapped by a low first-serve rate of 45.5%.

Finalist last year, Czech Karolina Pliskova, seeded 14, beat American Amanda Anisimova 6-1, 6-1.