Okutoyi, Owegi arrive for Billie Jean King Cup
Kenya's Angella Okutoyi poses with her title after finishing second in the W15 Nairobi World Tennis Tour at Karen Country Club in Nairobi on November 20, 2022.
What you need to know:
- Kenya last hosted the Billie Jean King Cup in 1995 when it was known as Fed Cup.
- Top players from Kenya, Botswana, Burundi, Ghana, Mauritius, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Seychelles, Tunisia, Uganda and Zimbabwe will compete at this year's edition where the winner will gain promotion to Europe/Africa Group II.
Junior Wimbledon doubles champion Angella Okutoyi and Alicia Owegi have landed in the country ahead of the Billie Jean King Cup Africa Group III scheduled for June 12-17 at the Nairobi Club.
Along with Okutoyi's twin sister Roselida Asumwa who is expected on Tuesday, the three are freshmen on scholarships in the USA.
Okutoyi and Asumwa joined Auburn University and Cowley College respectively in January this year, while Owegi joined Alabama University late last year.
The fourth player on the Kenyan Billie Jean King Cup team is Mbagathi Road Secondary School student Cynthia Wanjala,18.
Team Kenya will train under renowned coach Francis Rogoi, who was behind Okutoyi's rise from position 186 in January 2021 on the International Tennis Federation junior rankings to a career-high of 49 in September 2022.
The four players were selected for the 2022 Billie Jean King Cup Europe/Africa in Skopje, North Macedonia where Asumwa, Wanjala and Owegi finished 11th out of 14 countries.
Okutoyi missed out as it clashed with the prestigious Wimbledon Junior Championships in London where she won doubles title alongside Rose Marie Nijkamp from the Netherlands.
Ahead of the 12-nation Africa Group III tournament, Nairobi Club is upgrading its eight murram courts to internationally-recognized clay courts.
Kenya last hosted the Billie Jean King Cup in 1995 when it was known as Fed Cup.
Top players from Kenya, Botswana, Burundi, Ghana, Mauritius, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, Seychelles, Tunisia, Uganda and Zimbabwe will compete at this year's edition where the winner will gain promotion to Europe/Africa Group II.
