Week 36 - ITF ($15K) - Kyoto, Japan Hard

Peter too · Tennis legend

Week 36 - ITF ($15K) - Kyoto, Japan Hard

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

R1: DUNNE, Katy (GBR) [2] 288 def. BABA, Sari (JPN) 796 =CH 6-4 7-5

Peter too · Tennis legend

R2: DUNNE, Katy (GBR) 2 288 v KAJITANI, Robu (JPN) WC UNR

Jaffa · Challenger level

I find it weird that Katy has dropped to 15k's. Is there some bigger tournaments over the next few weeks over there?

PockyTastic · Futures level

There's an International level event followed by a Premier event which are both in Tokyo, but I don't think she'll get into qualies in either.

I saw on Instagram that she's not planning on going back out to Oz this Autumn (not necessarily a bad move), so I'll be interested to see what her Autumn schedule consists of.

Babfive · Satellite level

Peter too wrote:
R2: DUNNE, Katy (GBR) 2 288 v KAJITANI, Robu (JPN) WC UNR

Katy won 6-2 6-1 smile

steven · Tennis legend

L16: (2) Katy Dunne WR 288 beat (WC) Robu Kajitani (JPN) UNR 2 & 1

QF: (2) Katy Dunne WR 288 v (Q) Mei Yamaguchi (JPN) UNR

18-year-old Yamaguchi has a junior career high of 1377, set in 2015, and seems to have been spending most of this year playing 25K qualifying without actually qualifying, hence her lack of ranking points. However, having dropped down to 15Ks, she upset the 6th seed in R1. The one time she did qualify for a 25K, at her very first ITF Pro Circuit event back in 2015, she went a set up against Harriet Dart in R1, though Harriet went on to win 6-7(5) 6-1 6-3.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

QF: (2) Katy Dunne WR 288 def. (Q) Mei Yamaguchi (JPN) UNR 7-5 6-4

Michael D · All-time great

SF: (2) Katy DUNNE (GBR) WR 288 vs (4) Haruka KAJI (JPN) WR 318

steven · Tennis legend

As well as being on 'home turf', Kaji is on an 8-match winning streak, having won Nonthaburi 15K last time out (in early August) - she also won 8 matches in a row to win a 25K in Kofu as a qualifier in June, so I imagine she started favourite for the SF despite being lower-ranked.

Kaji won the 1st two games to 15

(a df being Katy's only point in game 2) but Katy hit back immediately, holding to love in game 3, breaking in game 4 then holding to love again in game 5.

The ITF PBP has since gone a bit crazy (it thinks games 7 and 8 are being played simultaneously!) but it looks like Kaji then held for 3-3 and now has 2 bps to go a break up again

... but Katy saves them both and eventually holds for 4-3*

steven · Tennis legend

Katy then broke again and served out the 1st set to love

The first 3 games of the 2nd set were all breaks too - 6-3 *2-1

steven · Tennis legend

In the end, the first 6 games of the 2nd set were ALL breaks ... then 2 holds before Katy broke again and served out to end Kaji's 8-match winning streak

SF: (2) Katy Dunne WR 288 beat (4) Haruka Kaji (JPN) WR 318 (CH 313 in Aug) by 3 & 4

FINAL: (2) Katy Dunne WR 288 v Michika Ozeki (JPN) WR 774 (CH 433 in 2015)

Mervatron2 · Challenger qualifying

Good week. Katy needed to win a few match back to back and a title would be a nice end to the week.

steven · Tennis legend

The good news so far ... Katy won the 1st set 6-2

The bad news ... she lost the next 5 games

She has since won 2 games to avoid bakery products in the 2nd set but Ozeki is serving for it again - 6-2 2-5*

steven · Tennis legend

Katy breaks again but Ozeki will have a *3rd* chance to serve out the set - 6-2 4-5*

0-40 - Katy has now won 11 out of 12 points on Ozeki's serve since going 0-5* down!

1 bp saved, the 2nd taken, so 12 of the last 14 points on return now.

Don't you dare get broken again now and waste this astonishing comeback!