Okutoyi falls short in W35 Nairobi tourney
Kenya’s Angella Okutoyi serves against Chinese Taipei’s Garland Joanna during the W35 Nairobi tournament at Nairobi Club on January 3, 2025.
What you need to know:
- She was full of praise for Okutoyi’s serve, saying, “I really struggled today when I was going to her backhand. I go hard, and she hits the ball back even harder. Her overall attitude is perfect. I think she has the potential to be playing slams.”
- Elsewhere, Kenya’s Cynthia Wanjala and her Botswana partner, Ekua Youri, lost in the first doubles semi-final, going down 6-2, 7-6 against Alyssa Reguer (France) and Vicky Van de Peer (Belgium).
African Games women’s singles champion Angella Okutoyi rued missed opportunities on her serve after losing to top-seeded Joanna Garland from Chinese Taipei in the W35 Nairobi quarter-finals at the Nairobi Club on Friday.
Sixth-seed Okutoyi started strong, winning the first set 6-4 after coming from behind three times. However, she couldn’t maintain her momentum, losing the second set 2-6 and the decisive third set 3-6.
“My opponent was aggressive in the match. I lost my service game, so I feel like that changed the scores drastically,” said Okutoyi.
“I feel if I had held myself more, maybe the result would have been different. But all in all, she was aggressive onwards, and I was more defensive. I just needed to hold on to my serve. I tried to fight for each and every point, but it didn't go my way,” she said.
It was a tough day for Okutoyi, who also lost in the doubles semi-final alongside her Japanese partner, Nagomi Higashitani. The pair fell 6-2, 7-6 to top seeds Sada Nahimana (Burundi) and Rinon Okuwaki (Japan).
Okutoyi now shifts her focus to the second week of the W35 Nairobi tournament, scheduled for January 6-12.
Okutoyi was the lone Kenyan remaining in the main draw after Stacy Yego, Seline Ahoya, and Nancy Kawira were eliminated in the qualifying rounds, while Cynthia Wanjala Cheruto exited in the first round of the main draw.
Garland, who trains in the Netherlands, praised Okutoyi’s abilities, describing her as a significant talent for Kenya.
“It was a very tough match. I think Angella is a really good player. I went into the match knowing that it wouldn’t be easy. I lost the first set because I wasn’t so focused. I was worrying about the score, but in the end, I managed to overcome that worry and just try to play my best tennis. I knew that if Angella was going to beat me, she would have to keep playing well. I’m just very happy to get through today,” said Garland.
Garland, 23, entered the W35 Nairobi tournament with an impressive track record, having won titles at the W35 Kayseri in Turkey, W35 Solarino (Italy) twice, W15 Sharm El Sheikh, and W35 Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt, as well as reaching the final of another W35 Sharm El Sheikh event.
She was full of praise for Okutoyi’s serve, saying, “I really struggled today when I was going to her backhand. I go hard, and she hits the ball back even harder. Her overall attitude is perfect. I think she has the potential to be playing slams.”
Elsewhere, Kenya’s Cynthia Wanjala and her Botswana partner, Ekua Youri, lost in the first doubles semi-final, going down 6-2, 7-6 against Alyssa Reguer (France) and Vicky Van de Peer (Belgium).
