Leylah Fernandez will be aiming to secure her first WTA title of the season, while Anna Kalinskaya is looking for her first-ever title as they face off in the final of the hard-court DC Open.
In the semifinals on Saturday, Fernandez, who was the runner-up at the 2021 US Open, served 12 aces and achieved her second win of the week against a top-20 player by defeating 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina with scores of 6-7 (2), 7-6 (3), 7-6 (3). This match lasted for 3 hours and 16 minutes.
Kalinskaya required less than half that time to beat Emma Raducanu with a score of 6-4, 6-3, hitting 14 backhand winners in her semifinal. Raducanu had previously won against Fernandez in the championship at Flushing Meadows four years ago.
Both finalists come into this match unseeded. The 22-year-old Fernandez from Canada is ranked 36th, while Kalinskaya, who is 26 and from Russia, holds the 48th rank.
This marks Kalinskaya’s third final at the tour level. She lost both title matches she played last season.
Fernandez has already secured three titles and earlier in the week defeated top-seeded Jessica Pegula. Sunday’s match will be her seventh career final.
In men’s singles, No. 7 seed Alex de Minaur reached his second Washington final after defeating Corentin Moutet with a score of 6-4, 6-3. He will compete against No. 12 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who won against No. 4 Ben Shelton with scores of 6-2, 7-5 in the other semifinal.
The victory in the semifinals marked de Minaur’s 20th win on hard courts in 2025, leading all players on the ATP tour. The Australian player is currently ranked 13th and has made it to his 19th career final; he has a record of nine wins and nine losses so far. One of his runner-up finishes occurred against Alexander Zverev at Washington in 2018.
