Leylah Fernandez had nothing but praise for Venus Williams following their doubles win at the U.S. Open on Saturday.
After the pair beat Eri Hozumi and Ulrikke Eikeri 7-6 (1), 6-1 in straight sets, Fernandez thanked her doubles partner for all of the motivation, calling Williams “inspirational.”
“She’s such an inspiration,” Fernandez said of Williams on the sidelines following the match. “You have motivated me to keep going on this journey through the good and the bad. Seeing you playing out here, having fun, playing it because you love the sport, it’s motivating. It’s inspirational.
“So this is your moment, too, and thank you so much for everything you have done.”
Despite struggling in singles late in her career, including losing to Karolina Muchova in the first round at the U.S. Open on Monday, Williams has played well alongside Fernandez thus far.
The pair upset No. 6 seed Lyudmyla Kichenok and Ellen Perez in the first round of doubles on Thursday, with Williams, 45, calling Fernandez, 22, “the best partner I ever played with — outside of Serena [Williams]” following the match.
“Our energy really matched each other in terms of determination, in terms of not giving up, in terms of really still just focused and dialed in in every single thing,” Williams told reporters. “That felt amazing because I never really played with a partner — outside of Serena, obviously — who had that kind of mentality, so it was really fun.”
Fernandez was elated when her partnership with Williams formed, saying that she felt “like a kid on Christmas Day” upon hearing the news.
“I was like a kid on Christmas day just jumping around,” Fernandez told reporters Thursday. “I was so happy. I don’t think I stopped smiling for the whole night and even in the morning. I was just super happy and excited.”
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Fernandez also said that she was shocked to hear that Williams compared her to Serena Williams.
“It’s probably the biggest compliment I’ve ever gotten,” Fernandez said. “I feel like those are big shoes to fill.”
After Saturday’s match, Williams also spoke about the heated confrontation between Taylor Townsend and Jelena Ostapenko earlier this week, praising how the Chicago native handled herself.
“I thought Taylor handled it amazing,” Williams told reporters. “With her as a mom how she handled it, her son is watching. She handled it with class, a situation that wasn’t so classy. She moved on and won again”
During the outburst, the Latvia native reportedly told Townsend that she had “no class” and “no education.”
Ostapenko apologized for her comments on Saturday, saying that her words did not come out the way she intended because English is not her first language.