NAIROBI, Kenya, January 12, 2025 – Kenya’s Angella Okutoyi went down fighting, losing to Chinese Taipei’s Joanna Garland 6-1 6-4 in the final of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) W35 Women’s World Tour at the Nairobi Club on Sunday afternoon.
The second seed proved strong for the African Games champion, her experience shining through to grant her victory amid a partisan home crowd.
The two were clashing for the second time in a fortnight, having faced each other in the quarterfinal of the same competition at the same venue, last week.
On that occasion, the Chinese Taipei won 4-6 6-2 6-3.
Defeat notwithstanding, Okutoyi can hold her head high, having continually held her own against higher ranked players as far as the ITF is concerned.
She will not be heading home empty handed after joining forces with Burundian Sada Nahimana to win the doubles title.
The duo brushed aside the Dutch pair of Demi and Lian Tran 6-3 6-3 in a one-sided match at the same venue on Saturday afternoon.
Okutoyi will now turn her attention to the next tournament, with the long-term focus on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, having missed out on Paris.
