Doi shocks Mattek-Sands on Wimbledon debut
Japanese qualifier Misaki Doi made a dream debut at Wimbledon as the world number 133 clinched a surprise 6-4, 5-7, 7-5 win over 30th seed Bethanie Mattek-Sands in the first round on Wednesday.
- Agence France-Presse
- Updated: June 23, 2011 12:25 AM IST
Japanese qualifier Misaki Doi made a dream debut at Wimbledon as the world number 133 clinched a surprise 6-4, 5-7, 7-5 win over 30th seed Bethanie Mattek-Sands in the first round on Wednesday.
Doi made a mockery of the 102 places separating her from Mattek-Sands in the WTA rankings as the 20-year-old upset the odds on her first appearance at the All England Club to book a second round tie against China's Zheng Jie.
The left-hander has spent most of her brief career playing events below the main tour on the ITF Circuit, but she rose to the occasion magnificently in just her second Grand Slam.
Doi didn't seem affected by a rain delay of nearly four hours and she landed the first blow by breaking for a 5-3 lead, only for Mattek-Sands to break back with the set up for grabs.
Doi kept her composure and took the set in the next game when Mattek-Sands double-faulted on break-point.
Mattek-Sands described herself as "the Lady Gaga of tennis" after turning up at a pre-Wimbledon party decked out in a vivid yellow 'tennis ball' dress created by one of the pop provocateur's designers.
And the American lived up to that flamboyant reputation as she arrived on Court 14 wearing a white jacket covered in tassles and cut-in-half tennis balls, knee-high socks and a top which had one sleeve missing to show off her tattoos.
Mattek-Sands proved she had some substance to complement her unique style as she recovered from 4-1 down to take the second set.
But Doi refused to be subdued and she clinched the best win of her career after breaking Mattek-Sands at 6-5 in the final set.