Boulter comes back to beat Canada's Fernandez in delayed match at Queen's Club

Leylah Fernandez of Canada plays a return to Kaite Boulter of Britain during their first round match at the Queen's Club tennis championships in London, Tuesday, June 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)

LONDON — Leylah Fernandez is out of singles competition at the HSBC Championships grass-court tennis tournament, losing 3-6, 7-6 (4), 7-5 to Britain’s Katie Boulter on Tuesday.

Fernandez, the eighth seed at The Queen’s Club in West London, was up a set and tied 3-3 in the second when the match was suspended Monday night due to darkness.

Boulter shook off the disruption when the match resumed to win a competitive second set.

Fernandez fought back from a break down in the third set, but her service game faltered again with the set tied 5-5 as Boulter regained the lead. The Briton then served out for the win.

Boulter will next face Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian at the WTA 500 event.

It was the first meeting between the players in a WTA Tour main draw. Boulter defeated Fernandez in qualifying at the 2018 Canadian Open in Montreal, and Fernandez returned the favour in qualifying at the 2023 Citi Open in Washington.

Fernandez was set to team with Germany’s Laura Siegemund later Tuesday for a first-round doubles match against Russia’s Alexandra Panova and Demi Schuurs of the Netherlands.

In another first-round doubles match, tennis legend Serena Williams was to make her anticipated return to competition alongside Canadian rising star Victoria Mboko. They were set to face New Zealand’s Erin Routliffe and Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States.


This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 9, 2026.

The Canadian Press