All eyes are on two young Montreal tennis stars who are turning heads this week with big wins at the 2021 US Open! On Tuesday, Canadian youngsters Leylah Annie Fernandez and Felix Auger-Aliassime made history when reaching the semifinals in the Women's and Men's singles tournaments, respectively.
21-year-old Auger-Aliassime became the first Canadian man to do so, beating Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz just hours after compatriot Leylah Fernandez knocked off two former World No. 1 players in Naomi Osaka and Angelique Kerber, as well as the current No. 5 player Elina Svitolina to advance to her first major semifinal. If Fernandez can win the whole tournament, she’ll overtake Bianca Andreescu as the highest-ranked Canadian on tour.
Two matches now stand between Fernandez and Auger-Aliassime and their respective titles, but they both will have their hands full. Fernandez takes on world No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka on Thursday evening, and Auger-Aliassime plays two-time major finalist Daniil Medvedev on Friday.
Fernandez and Auger-Aliassime are now two of the most popular players on the tour, so it is only natural that social media celebrated their wins. Here’s what some celebrities, athletes, and politicians are saying about them.