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Tennis: US Open runner-up Fernandez stunned, as top seeds fall in Indian Wells

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Agence France-Presse

<div><iframe allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="232" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/episode/1S6icFzEyHW2Dpx8ojfLVX" width="100%"></iframe></div><p>Unseeded Shelby Rogers upset US Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez in a marathon three-setter at the WTA Indian Wells on Tuesday in what has been a bruising start of the week for the women seeds.</p><p>Rogers outlasted Canadian teenager Fernandez 2-6, 6-1, 7-6 (4) in 2 hours and 34 minutes to reach the quarterfinals of the combined women&#x27;s and men&#x27;s tournament in the California desert.</p><p>&quot;It was a matter of who was able to dictate the points,&quot; Rogers said. &quot;Who could get control of the points first. </p><p>&quot;She has a bright future. Luck was on my side today, and I look forward to the quarter-finals.&quot;</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/10/06/21/tennis-leylah-fernandez-eager-to-return-to-action">Tennis: Leylah Fernandez eager to return to action after Sharapova pep talk</a></li></ul><p>Rogers moves on to play 24th-seeded Jelena Ostapenko, who upset second seed Iga Swiatek of Poland in straight sets. </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/09/16/21/leylah-fernandez-emma-raducanu-made-for-greatness">Dyan Castillejo says Leylah Fernandez, Emma Raducanu made for greatness</a></li></ul><p>After they split the first two sets, Rogers hit a backhand winner to break a 4-4 deadlock in the tiebreaker then won the next two points to clinch the match. </p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Leylah Fernandez hits a shot in her third round match against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia at the BNP Paribas Open on October 10, at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA Today Sports/Reuters" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/reuters/10/13/20211011-tennis-bnp-paribas-open-leylah-fernandez.jpg"/><figcaption>Leylah Fernandez hits a shot in her third round match against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia at the BNP Paribas Open on October 10, at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. <em>Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA Today Sports/Reuters</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>The 23rd-seeded Fernandez held serve in a lengthy 12th game of the third set to set up the tiebreaker. She saw off one match point and then got a lucky bounce off the net cord to get the advantage. Fernandez went on to win the game on the next point when Rogers hit a backhand into the net.</p><p>Swiatek became the latest top seed casualty, losing in straight sets 6-4, 6-3 to Latvia&#x27;s Ostapenko in a fourth round match.</p><p>Ostapenko won 65 percent of her first serve points and broke Swiatek&#x27;s serve four times in in the 93 minute match.</p><p>Swiatek&#x27;s ouster comes one day after No. 1 seed Karolina Pliskova and defending champion Bianca Andreescu were bundled out of the tournament in their third round matches.</p><p>Canadian Andreescu&#x27;s elimination means there will be no repeat champion in Indian Wells. </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/09/15/21/tennis-fernandez-caught-up-in-cinderella-moment">Tennis: Fernandez caught up in Cinderella moment after U.S. Open run</a></li></ul><p>Swiatek&#x27;s exit, combined with fourth seeded Elina Svitolina&#x27;s crushing 6-1, 6-1 defeat to American Jessica Pegula, leaves just two women remaining who are seeded in the top 10, Barbora Krejcikova (No. 3) and Angelique Kerber (No. 10) of Germany.</p><p>Reigning US Open champion Emma Raducanu was eliminated earlier in her first match of the tournament.</p><p>The combined WTA and ATP event is normally held in Indian Wells in March but returned this fall after a two-and-a -half-year hiatus due the global coronavirus pandemic. There was no tournament in 2020 and the 2021 event was delayed to this month. </p><div><strong>FROM THE ARCHIVES</strong></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1772548" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div>

Unseeded Shelby Rogers upset Fernandez 2-6, 6-1, 7-6 (4) in 2 hours and 34 minutes on Tuesday to reach the quarterfinals.