As a fellow left-handed player, tennis journalist Joel Drucker prefers to observe Leylah Fernandez over Juan Martin Del Potro. Additionally, he relates to her more as a player and has observed how individuals relate to tennis players based on their own dispositions and traits.
Drucker was interviewed on an episode of the ATP Tennis Radio Podcast hosted by former WTA player Jill Craybas. They discussed Drucker’s preferred performers and how he manages to compose his articles without favoritism.
Drucker also discussed how tennis differs from team sports in that all spectators can relate to the participants on a fundamental level.
As a writer, Joel Drucker is expected to remain impartial, but he expressed his personal preferences regarding players. He stated that because Leylah Fernandez is a southpaw, he prefers her to Juan Martin Del Potro.
“Del Petro is a great player, but it’s like music, like Bruce Springsteen. Del Potro for me personally, I am left-handed, I’m 5’7″, so you could see why Leylah Fernandez would appeal to me. I was like, wow, that’s what I should be doing with my forehand but professional[ly] I would’nt be doing my job if I was constantly advocating ‘Why isn’t Del Potro playing left-handed?'”
He also discussed how tennis supporters are attracted to players whose personalities and physiques mirror their own.
“I think the neat thing about this game more than the team sports is we could relate to it elementally. How many people go to tennis and they watch themselves. In tournaments I see, people I play with and they are talking to me about players, like my tall friends they like watching Del Potro. He liked Del Potro, he liked (Tomas) Berdych and my tenacious friends liked Kei Nishikori and David Ferrer and I’m looking for lefties, like I’m looking for disrupters,” Drucker concluded.
A Glimpse at Leylah Fernandez’s Achievements in her tennis career
On the WTA tour, the 20-year-old Leylah Fernandez is a player to monitor. In her early career, which began in 2019, she has already reached the finals of a Grand Prix.
As adolescents, Fernandez and Emma Raducanu made history at the 2021 US Open as the two finalists. On her way to the finals, Fernandez defeated Aryna Sabalenka, Elina Svitolina, and defending champion Naomi Osaka. In contrast, Raducanu defeated her in consecutive sets.
Fernandez won the 2021 Monterrey Open WTA championship by defeating Viktorija Golubic 6-1, 6-4.
Last year at the French Open, the Canadian reached the quarterfinals but was defeated by Martina Trevisan of Italy. This year, she reached the second round at the Australian Open and played in the first round at Wimbledon.
In August of last year, the Canadian attained a career-high ranking of No. 13.