Canadian tennis player Leylah Fernandez hadn't even been born in 2001 when terrorists attacked New York, but she hopes to show the same resilience as New Yorkers after her US Open final loss.

The 19-year-old's dream run to her first Grand Slam final ended in defeat yesterday morning (Singapore time) as she fell to British 18-year-old qualifier Emma Raducanu 6-4, 6-3 at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

"It definitely stings," said Fernandez, who was born in Montreal to an Ecuadorean father and Filipino-Canadian mum.

"But it will just make me want to work harder and stronger, just come back to every tournament with the same hunger I came into this tournament."

Fernandez told the crowd on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks that she hoped to be as strong and resilient as New York has been.

"I remembered watching movies about what happened, then asking my parents what exactly happened in that day," she said. "I was just so in shock when they told me. They told me what they were doing when they saw the news.

"I don't know much about what really happened, but with the information I do have, I know that New York has suffered a lot the past years when it did happen.

"I just wanted to let them know that they're so strong, they're so resilient. They're just incredible."

Cheering fans helped propel 73rd-ranked Fernandez past defending champion Naomi Osaka, second-ranked Aryna Sabalenka, fifth-ranked Elina Svitolina and three-time Slam winner Angelique Kerber.

She will rise to a career-best 27th in the world rankings this week, serving notice to future rivals of her abilities.

One area Fernandez will hope to build on is her ability to feed off the energy of the crowd.

"One thing that really surprised me was that the more I'm more outgoing on court and try to get the crowd involved, the more I'm playing well.

"I'm glad I've discovered that of myself." - AFP