Asumwa through to W15 tournament second round
Roselinda Asumwa plays a forehand shot to Cynthia Cheruto during Eastern Africa Junior Tennis Championship semi-final match at Nairobi Club on January 10, 2018.
What you need to know:
- Asumwa saw off Pratt, 26, 6-4,6-2 in a match that lasted one hour and 26 minutes
- Stacy Yego, who entered the main draw as a lucky loser after a Venezuelan player withdrew from the main draw, was not lucky after falling 6-0, 6-0 to Italian Linda Salvin in 54 minutes
- Mary Wachira and Claire Muthoni, who were eliminated in the singles qualifying draw, were on the receiving end 6-0,6-0 in doubles against fourth seeds Emily Selbold (Germany)/Salvin (Italy)
Kenya's Roselida Asumwa Tuesday made a bright start at W15 Nairobi World Tennis Tour after dispatching Nessa Pratt from Australia in straight sets in the first round on the clay courts of Karen Country Club in Nairobi.
The 18-year-old, a twin sister to Angella Okutoyi, saw off Pratt, 26, 6-4,6-2 in a match that lasted one hour and 26 minutes.
Asumwa, who earned a wild card to the main draw, had an ace, won 59 percentage of the service points and 56 percentage receiver points. She won 78 percentage of the service games.
In the second round, Asumwa will face the winner between sixth-seeded Sharmada Balu from India and Kenyan Katarina Karanja who clash on Wednesday.
"It feels great to register my first ever win a W15 tournament. It was a good match. I played really well. I made my opponent run on the court. My first serves were especially good, they made me win this match," said Asumwa, who got a three-year membership at Karen Country Club in August this year.
Asumwa was eliminated early in her first W15 event at Peponi School off Thika Superhighway in Nairobi in 2019.
She was not the only Kenyan in action on Tuesday.
Stacy Yego, who entered the main draw as a lucky loser after a Venezuelan player withdrew from the main draw, was not lucky after falling 6-0, 6-0 to Italian Linda Salvin in 54 minutes.
Mary Wachira and Claire Muthoni, who were eliminated in the singles qualifying draw, were on the receiving end 6-0,6-0 in doubles against fourth seeds Emily Selbold (Germany)/Salvin (Italy).
Asumwa was supposed to partner with Pooja Kudesia but will now not compete in doubles after the Indian player got injured.
Kudesia retired in singles while trailing 3-0 in the first set against American fourth seed Sabastiani Leon.
The first day of the main draw saw Magdalena Stollkovska from North Macedonia defeat Indian Lakshmi Gowda 6-0,6-4.
Romanian fifth seed Alexandra Iordache bundled out Indian Bhasin Smirti as top-seed Selbold stopped Israeli Adi Bitton 6-1,6-4.
Nigerian Sarah Adegoke stunned Natalia Kowalczyk from Poland 6-1,6-2.
Kenya's tennis star Okutoyi will start her campaign in singles against Indian qualifier Sharanya Shetty on Wednesday and in doubles where she will pair with Indian Smirti against Caroline Romeo (France)/Savil Yuldasheva (Uzbekistan).
