MONTREAL, Aug 7: World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty crashed out of the WTA tournament in Toronto on Tuesday, falling in three sets in her second-round opener to 29th-ranked American Sofia Kenin.
Australia�s Barty, the French Open champion who was competing for the first time since a fourth-round exit at Wimbledon, battled back from an early break to take the opening set, but she was unable to do the same in the next two sets as 20-year-old Kenin triumphed 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-4.
�It just wasn�t there today,� Barty said. �I think a little bit of rust, but I think just in general it was just a bit loose.
�I think at times I was missing by big margins, which is not something that I�m very used to or comfortable with.
�It�s not panic stations,� she added, confident that she can get things together before the US Open begins.
�It�s my first match on hard court in a long time.� Kenin, who has climbed the rankings this season with wins in Charleston and Mallorca and a runner-up finish in Acapulco, notched her first victory over a top-five player in her fourth attempt.
She needed four match points to seal the victory, with Barty saving three on her own serve in the ninth game of the final set.
Kenin, who had seen Barty pull back one of two service breaks in the set, then calmly served it out, giving herself a fourth match point with a forehand winner and lifting her arms in triumph as Barty fired a forehand long. � AFP
