“That is just ridiculous”- Controversy erupts after Leylah Fernandez halts the play during championship point in Monterrey

Leylah Fernandez

Defending champion Leylah Fernandez made a remarkable comeback to defeat Camila Osorio in a thrilling three-set encounter to lift the title at WTA Monterrey Open.

The Canadian teen came back from a set down and save 5 championship points to prevail over 5th seed Osorio 6-7(5), 6-4, 7-6(3). Since her fairytale run at the US Open, Fernandez didn’t have any notable results, winning only 3 matches in 3 tournaments. But the 19-year-old bought her A-game in Monterrey to defend her title and extend her unbeaten run in the tournament to 10 matches.

But the title triumph was not the only talking point during the finals. Fernadez was serving at 5-6(40-40) to stay in the match when there was an electrical issue that took out the lighting and official stream. Osorio won the point and needed only one more to lift the title. But Fernandez argued with the chair umpire to replay the point.

meanwhile, what's happening in leylah fernandez's monterrey final against camila osorio is just ridiculous. over a 15 minute delay on championship point (for osorio) at 5-6 in the final set because of an issue with the flood lights
— Vivek Jacob (@vivekmjacob) March 7, 2022

Then there was a 10-minute delay to fix the floodlights, subsequent to that the point wasn’t replayed but the delay was enough to waver Osorio’s rhythm and Leylah saved the championship point and won three points in a row to force a tiebreak.

Generally, when there is an interruption midway through the rally, no point is awarded and it is replayed. But since both the players keep the rally going, the umpire decided not to declare it a ‘let’ point’ and the rally was won by Osario. However, one could argue that this interruption was advantageous for Leylah as she had time to calm her nerves and eventually win the match.

The fans had a mixed reaction to the unusual incident as some argued that Leylah unfairly lost a point that should have been replayed. And some claimed the Canadian asked for the lights to be fixed immediately to disrupt the rhythm of her opponent.

Let's just say if Leylah Fernandez 🇨🇦 was MP up and a few lights went out she would 100% not have stopped play……..
— Chris Goldsmith (@TheTennisTalker) March 7, 2022

So the light goes out during the point; which by the rules is a let/replay point. For whatever reason we carry on and Leylah Fernandez is down another match point. Very odd situation🎾
— Yung King🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🇮🇪 (@CharlieGreen96) March 7, 2022

Ridiculous situation in WTA Monterrey with Leylah Fernandez complaining about the lighting before playing a match point against her in the final. Now a long delay before she has to serve down match point
— Dan Wolken (@DanWolken) March 7, 2022

Leylah Fernandez’s season so far

The Canadian had a barren run of form since her surreal runner-up finish at the US Open last year. She started her 2022 season with a second-round finish a the WTA Adelaide International before being knocked out in the opening round of the Australian Open. After a brief break since her shock loss in Melbourne, the Canadian made an astonishing turnaround in Monterrey. She eventually found her form back and had a brilliant outing in Monterrey to lift the title for a second consecutive year.