The 2021 US Open has been rocked by teens. In particular, a clique of kids who aren’t old enough to have a Grey-Goose-and-Chambord “Honey Deuce” on the grounds of the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
Leylah Fernandez, Emma Raducanu and Carlos Alcaraz, all 18 when the tournament started, have camped out in Flushing Meadows like it’s their own personal Coachella.
Like they own the place or something.
The olds—and by that I mean wizened veterans in their early or mid-20s—might be forgiven for looking around, like: “What is happening?”
“Hey you kids. Get off my asphalt!”
Fernandez, from Canada, turned 19 a few days ago at the US Open—where she has celebrated by beating two US Open champions, Naomi Osaka and Angelique Kerber, as well as the No. 5 seed Elina Svitolina.
Raducanu, an 18-year-old Brit ranked No. 150, has raced through eight rounds of play, becoming the only qualifier in history, man or woman, to reach the semifinals. She hasn’t dropped a set, has lost the fewest games of any woman in the main draw, and defeated the recent singles gold medalist Belinda Bencic in straight sets in the quarters.
And Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, also 18, rocked the tournament by stunning No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas in the second round. Alcaraz won back-to-back five-setters to advance to the quarters in his very first Slam before having to retire with an abductor injury.
As incredible as their play and results have been, what is even more impressive is the self-belief, poise and presence all three have exhibited. They have taken on huge stars, on the biggest stages in the game, and never wavered in the conviction that they belonged.
Sure, it’s the stuff of teen dreams, but none of them seems to be dreaming.
After upending Osaka in the second round in a match under the lights on Ashe, Fernandez was asked at what point in the match did she believe she could win? The teen had zero hesitation. “From the very beginning, right before the match I knew I was able to win,” said the pipsqueak Canadian.
Raducanu just finished Newstead Wood School in London and her A-levels, the exams taken before entering university. But the qualifier, playing in just her second major has been positively schooling her elders. The British teen has not just been calm and cool on court, she has been ruthless.
In contrast, it’s their opponents who’ve looked shaky, uneasy, even crotchety on court. Bencic may have captured the gold medal and nine consecutive victories this summer, but as Raducanu locked into her game in their quarterfinals, the Swiss player—a comparative veteran at 24—appeared to crumble under pressure. Same for Osaka and Kerber against Fernandez. Tsitsipas expressed wonder after losing in five to Alcaraz. “I've never seen someone hit the ball so hard,” the Greek said. “I felt like he played the fifth [set] completely—the way he played the first set basically, careless, going for every single shot.“
Are these teenagers inoculated from pressure? Or are they just too young to feel and process it?
Maybe it’s just teen chutzpah, to use a New York word. That sense of invincibility that kids have—and gives parents nightmares.
Asked to explain where her confidence came from, Fernandez said, “Just a natural belief. From a very young age, I knew I was able to beat anyone, anyone who is in front of me. Even playing different sports, I was always that competitive, saying, ‘I'm going to win against them, I'm going to win against my dad in soccer,’ even though that's, like, impossible.”
The American Caty McNally, 19, who along with 17-year-old Coco Gauff upset the top seeds Elise Mertens and 35-year-old Su-Wei Hsieh in women’s doubles on Wednesday, said “It just shows no one's afraid. Age is a number. Yeah, I mean, it inspires me to go out there and work harder and say, ‘Why not me?’"
“I've imagined myself playing on every tournament, every Grand Slam, at the biggest stage,” said Fernandez. “When I was younger, I would imagine myself playing against [Justine Henin]. I would also imagine myself playing against Serena and Venus, and the past few years playing against Osaka in a big tournament.” Asked if she always won those imaginary matches, a smiling Fernandez said: “Yes. Yes, I did.”
Angie Kerber, the 33-year-old German who lost to Fernandez in the fourth round, said it was hard for her to imagine playing with no pressure or fear. “I think it's just the young people. I wish, but I think it's playing without completely pressure, it's, in [my] position, impossible.”
Fernandez and Raducanu have taken very different paths to the US Open semifinals, but each has looked invincible in her own way.
The 73rd-ranked Canadian is an old hand at 19, playing in her seventh major. Her insanely difficult draw has been full of drama, beating No. 3 Osaka, No. 16 Kerber, and No. 5 Svitolina in hard-fought three-setters, all lasting over two hours. Against the Ukrainian Svitolina, a two-time Slam semifinalist, Fernandez won the final set tiebreak in a nailbiter, 7-5.
Raducanu has aced her tests, losing just 22 games and no sets, in five matches. Though she professes to be surprised at her performances, on court there has been no mystery at all to her take-no-prisoners tennis. Though Raducanu had to retire from her fourth-round match at Wimbledon with breathing difficulties, which some suggested perhaps unfairly had been evidence of a panic attack, in New York the youngster has been a study of total serenity.
For her part, Fernandez, said “I'm not surprised of anything that's happening right now. I chose this profession and I want to enjoy it as much as possible and have fun.”
They are living their best lives, to use Gen Z’s vernacular.
You’d never know it from watching these kids play, but if you listen hard enough, the phenoms will reveal that they are, after all, teens.
Fernandez admitted after her quarterfinal win over Svitolina that her dad “told me that I put him through hell and back with this match.” Raducanu, whose parents remained back in London, has been in and out of touch with them. “I haven't actually called my parents for quite a while. Like the day before they were ghosting me,” she said.
Fernandez, a self-professed “happy-go-lucky girl,” credits her parents for her positive perspective.
“My parents would teach me off court, saying that you can't take things too seriously, you've got to be mature but at the same time just be a kid,” she said. “Let loose, have fun, eat chocolate when you want to, and just have fun, watch movies, go past your bedtime. “
Tonight, in the semifinals of the US Open, Leylah Fernandez and Emma Raducanu again have a chance to stay up way too late.
Watch: Semifinals Preview: Sabalenka vs. Fernandez, Sakkari vs. Raducanu
