Leylah Fernandez goes match point down in midst of electrical failure; holds her nerve to defend Monterrey title
Leylah Fernandez defeated Camila Osorio 6-7(5) 6-4 7-6(3) in the finals of the 2022 Monterrey Open on Sunday to successfully defend her title from the previous year. The scoreline itself is fairly indicative of the competitive nature of the match. When you consider the five match points saved by Fernandez, it only adds to the dramatic and gritty nature of the match.
However, the unforeseen element of an electrical failure in the middle of a point that led to one of those five match points takes the drama to the next level.
The incident happened when Leylah Fernandez was serving to stay in the match at 5-6 in the third set. Having already saved multiple match points along the way, the 19-year-old brought herself to deuce.
Can sort of see the flicker https://t.co/OJHhNGn3Ot
In the next point, Osorio hit a deep return to neutralize Fernandez's advantage off the serve. However, the Colombian's next shot clipped the let cord which forced Fernandez to rush to the front of the court. As she successfully returned the ball, an electrical failure crashed the electronic display, disrupting the audio feed and causing a few of the lights to go off. Play continued and Osorio eventually passed Fernandez at the net to raise another match point.
The 2021 US Open runner-up immediately approached the chair umpire and asked for the point to be replayed on the grounds of hindrance. After much deliberation, the Canadian's request was turned down as the umpire felt the players still had sufficient light to continue play.
Fernandez eventually recomposed herself and played a strong tiebreaker to emerge victorious after three grueling hours of play.
Leylah Fernandez's incident had a precedent last year when the umpire's call was different
Leylah Fernandez's request to the umpire to call a let wasn't wrong. In fact, when such an incident took place in Dubai last season, the point did get replayed. There's also the rulebook that elaborates on "involuntary hindrance".
here the section of the rulebook that should refer to the situation
yesterday night, chair umpire said to the supervisor: "what I told her is that most of the lights are still on, that's why I didn't stop" https://t.co/vcmxynFdsR
In the quarterfinal match between Elise Mertens and Jessica Pegula at the 2021 Dubai Open, the Belgian found herself down three match points at 5-7, 4-5. Her first serve helped her save the first two match points, but she was forced to deliver a second serve on the third.
An electronic malfunction occurred as Pegula hit the return and Mertens stopped play. The umpire acknowledged the Belgian's stance and called it a let. Mertens put her first serve in and won the replayed point.
As fate would have it, the American couldn't win a game hence and ended up losing the match 7-5 5-7 0-6.
While arguments can be made both for and against stoppage of play, the players would unarguably benefit from a consistent system of judgment. To Leylah Fernandez's credit, she didn't let the situation get the better of her.