Hosts maintain winning run at ongoing ITF-Billie Jean Cup in Nairobi

Hosts Kenya once again did the business in the second round of the ongoing ITF-Billie Jean King Cup, Group Three qualifiers being held at the Nairobi Club following a 3-0 win over Botswana. Visiting dignitaries of the day included Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba flanked by 1500m and 5000m World Record holder Faith Kipyegon.

Kenya are now joint top with Nigeria who are yet to lose a match or a set in the on going tournament so far. Once again it was tennis sensation Angela Okutoyi who helped the hosts sail through. Following the great comeback on day one’s loss by Alicia Owegi, she showed grit in her opening game yesterday after a first set loss to end up winning 4-6/6-4/6-2 against Cheludo Monayoo.

Owegi had to dig deep after a shoddy performance in the opening set where she had faced many unforced errors and was forced to rectify her play. Cheludo appeared intent on playing calm but aggressive whenever she was in the net while the Kenyan covered ground in fighting for points. However the Botswana player began losing momentum and also making a slew of errors as well which helped Owegi come alive and dictate terms in the subsequent sets.

In the second Women’s singles match, Okutoyi used her experience to shut down Chelsea Chakanyuka in straight sets of 6-1/6-2. The Kenyan ace dropped only three games on her way to an easy breeze in a clash that hardly lasted an hour on the clock. US-based Okutoyi spared no chance to convert her points in effective mode even as she made her opponent work on the court which ended up in frustration from the challenger. The first set was smooth sailing with no fuss as Okutoyi used her reach and hits to good measure while also defending when need arose. The storyline was similar in the final set whereby Okutoyi was literally toying with Chakanyuka much to the joy of the hundreds of supporters in the stands.

Having already sailed through on account of winning two singles matches,the doubles rubber was just a formality. Coach Francis Mwangi paired Okutoyi with twin sister Roselida Asumwa and they went ahead to beat the Botswana duo of Chelsea Chakanyuka and Kelebogile Monnayoo in straight sets of 6-4/6-4. The understanding between the two sisters seemed more clinical and smooth as opposed to the previous day when Okutoyi was paired with Cynthia Cheruto in the Moroccan assignment.

The free flow of serve and return was elegant to watch even as the Botswanese held their own and failed by conversion of points on serve. With that in mind,the Kenyan pair were aggressive and pin-point in service as they pretty much covered enough ground. The first set was a good battle between the pairs with lots of great service games and also key points in decisive moments with momentum constantly shifting before the tide shifted to the Kenyans favor. The second set was close as well but Botswana pushed hard to get a decider but ultimately had no enough gas to sustain the pressure.

Pool A whipping teams still remain Namibia and Uganda while in Pool B Seychelles is bottom having lost all matches in six matches. Tunisia are the current Pool A leaders with 2/2 wins and next face a difficult prospect in second placed Zimbabwe.