Article courtesy of Tennis Canada
Great Britain’s Johanna Konta has been crowned the first champion of the inaugural CIBC Wood Gundy Challenger, a $25K ITF Pro Circuit event in Winnipeg, following a 6-3, 6-1 win over countrywoman Samantha Murray at the Winnipeg Lawn Tennis Club on Sunday.
The tournament’s No. 1 seed, Konta did not drop a set all week and in fact lost only 18 games through five matches. She was dominant on serve versus No. 3 Murray, never facing a single break point, while clinching four of the seven opportunities she received. She earned an early break in the first set and held on to the take the one-set lead before quickly going up 4-0 in the second set. Konta’s momentum continued through till she officially clinched the victory.
For the 22-year-old Australian-born competitor, the Winnipeg trophy is her first of the 2013 season and eighth overall. Currently ranked world No. 140, the win could help Konta best her career-high spot of No. 137, which she reached in June. Konta, who is coached by Canadian Louis Cayer – who is set to be inducted into the Canadian Tennis Hall of Fame next week during Rogers Cup in Montreal – also won the $25K Waterloo Challenger in Canada back in 2009.
Konta’s triumph wraps up a successful first year for the CIBC Wood Gundy Challenger.
“Congratulations to Johanna for winning the first CIBC Wood Gundy Challenger,” said Rob Langan, tournament director. “The tournament ran smoothly all week and we enjoyed a lot of exciting matches. It was wonderful to see such high-class tennis in Winnipeg.”
“We were well-received by the tennis community, and feedback from the players was also fantastic,” said Mark Arndt, executive director, Tennis Manitoba. “We definitely have a solid base to build from for next year and are already looking to make the second CIBC Woody Gundy Challenger ever better.”
Next up on the Canadian competitive calendar is the Odlum Brown VanOpen, a combined $100K men’s and $100K women’s Challenger, set to take place next week at the Hollyburn Country Club in Vancouver. Live scoring of all Canadian ITF-sanctioned events can be found at www.tenniscanada.com.
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