Sonay Kartal falls to Jessica Bouzas Maneiro despite second-set fightback

Sonay Kartal’s comeback fell short as her Australian Open debut ended in defeat to Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maneiro.

British number three Kartal rose rapidly up the rankings during the second half of last season, winning a first WTA Tour title in Tunisia and breaking into the top 100.

That earned her a place in the main draw in Melbourne, and she was the only British player in action on a rain-soaked opening day, with the contest finally getting under way three and a half hours after its scheduled slot.

Kartal was blown away in the opening set but recovered from 3-0 down in the second set to force a tie-break before losing out 6-1 7-6 (5).

Bouzas Maneiro, ranked 33 places above Kartal at 54 in the world, knocked Katie Boulter out of the US Open last year and began her season with a one-sided victory over Maria Sakkari at the United Cup.

Kartal was playing her first match of the season after choosing to stay at home over Christmas and she could find no traction in the opening set, watching a succession of winners fly past her following a further delay while the umpire used a towel to help dry damp patches on the court.

She was staring at defeat inside an hour when Bouzas Maneiro, who hit 23 winners in the match compared to just six from Kartal, made it nine games in a row but from there things began to shift.

There were more errors from the Spaniard’s racket and Kartal found a foothold, breaking Bouzas Maneiro twice and saving a match point at 4-5 thanks to some tenacious defending and a poor volley from her opponent.

She led 4-2 in the tie-break but now it was Bouzas Maneiro’s turn to fight back and a volley into an open court on her second match point completed the victory.