Sofia Kenin crashes out of Linz Open after superb start

| by Sebastian Dahlman

Sofia Kenin is trying to restart he career but after a solid start of the season, she can't follow up with more good results.

The 24-year-old American started her 2023 season with a second-round loss in Auckland, but then, she reached semifinals in Hobart, which was her best result at a WTA event since the 2020 Roland Garros final run.

Then, Kenin lost in the first round of the Australian Open, and two weeks later, she also appeared in Austria, as she signed up for the 2023 Linz Open.

2023 Upper Austria Ladies Linz Open WTA Prize Money & Points Overview - 225,480€
2023 Upper Austria Ladies Linz Open WTA Prize Money & Points Overview - 225,480€

In the first round, she took on world no. 71, Jule Niemeier. The American had a superb start, she broke her opponent's serve twice and the German didn't find any answers to her questions as Kenin won the first set 6-2 in just 33 minutes.

But she couldn't follow up on that performance in the next two sets. It seemed that the second set will have to be decided in a tie-break as both players were solid on their serve, but in the eighth game, Kenin lost a 30-0 lead, as her opponent would go on to win 8 consecutive points to win the second set 6-3.

Kenin needed a good showing in the third set, but she couldn't create any chances to break her opponent. On the other hand, Niemeier had seven break point, and using one was enough to win the match 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 in two hours and 14 minutes and eliminate the 2020 Australian Open champion.

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