Richmond Open RD1: Wildcard Kamal Among First Round Winners

Tournament wildcard Malak Kamal is through to the last 16 of the Richmond Open after beating Latvia’s Ineta Mackevica in the first round.

Kamal came into the Challenger 30 level competition as one of two wildcards, and she faced the Latvian No.1 on Tuesday evening. She won the opening game, but saw Mackevica, who has been inside the world’s top 50 previously, fight back. Kamal was able to regroup after losing the second game, and she went on to win in four to book her second round berth.

She will be joined in the second round by compatriot Jana Shiha, who defeated New Zealand’s Kaitlyn Watts in four games. The Kiwi looked she might be mounting a comeback after winning the third game, but Shiha quashed that in the fourth, winning 11-4 to advance.

Elsewhere, Marta Dominguez Fernandez won the all-Spanish battle on Tuesday. She took on compatriot, and the national No.1, Cristina Gomez, but it was Fernandez who took the win. She won in straight games to make her way though to the second round.

The English trio of Katie Malliff, Millie Tomlinson and Lucy Beecroft were all victorious on the opening day. Malliff and Beecroft both won in straight games, while Tomlinson had to fight through a tricky contest with Polish No.1 Karina Tyma to advance.

Hong Kong’s Chan Sin Yuk and Australia’s Jessica Turnbull were the other two winners on the opening day in Virginia. Turnbull downed 9/16 seeding member Saskia Beinhard to cause an upset, while the Hongkonger got the better of Egypt’s Rana Ismail.

The seeds come into the draw in the second round fo the Richmond Open, which takes place on Wednesday, May 10. You can keep up to date with daily updates from the tournament on the PSA Challenger Tour’s Twitter and Facebook. 

First Round Results: Richmond Open
Jessica Turnbull (AUS) bt Saskia Beinhard (GER) 3-1: 6-11, 11-7, 11-8, 11-6 (35m)
Chan Sin Yuk (HKG) bt Rana Ismail (EGY) 3-1: 5-11, 11-6, 11-2, 11-3 (25m)
Millie Tomlinson (ENG) bt Karina Tyma (POL) 3-1: 11-8, 9-11, 11-6, 11-4 (40m)
[WC] Malak Kamal (EGY) bt Ineta Mackevica (LAT) 3-1: 11-8, 7-11, 11-7, 11-3 (35m)
Katie Malliff (ENG) bt [WC] Avery Park (USA) 3-0: 11-3, 11-3, 11-1 (30m)
Lucy Beecroft (ENG) bt Sarah Cardwell (AUS) 3-0: 11-6, 11-9, 11-8
Marta Dominguez Fernandez (ESP) bt Cristina Gomez (ESP) 3-0: 11-5, 11-7, 11-6 (40m)
Jana Shiha (EGY) bt Kaitlyn Watts (NZL) 3-0: 11-7, 11-3, 6-11, 11-4 (40m)

Second Round Draw: To Be Played Wednesday, May 10
[1] Tinne Gilis (BEL) v Jessica Turnbull (AUS)
Chan Sin Yuk (HKG) v [8] Sana Ibrahim (EGY)
[7] Hana Ramadan (EGY) v Millie Tomlinson (ENG)
[WC] Malak Kamal (EGY) v [3] Melissa Alves (FRA)
[4] Sivasangari Subramaniam (MAS) v Katie Malliff (ENG)
Lucy Beecroft (ENG) v [5] Rachel Arnold (MAS)
Marta Dominguez Fernandez (ESP) v [6] Nada Abas (EGY)
Jana Shiha (EGY) v [2] Salma Hany (EGY)