Guadalajara, Jalisco, November 10, 2021.- With a flawless performance, the Japanese duo Shuko Aoyama and Ena Shibahara, got their first victory in the doubles portion of the AKRON WTA Finals Guadalajara 2021 located in the Complex Pan-American Tennis Championship. The Japanese duo defeated the Croatian Darija Jurak and Andreja Klepac from Slovenia, 6-0 and 6-4 in 1 hour and 7 minutes.
The match was a part of the Tenochtitlán group. The Japanese duo – who are the second seeds of the tournament – had a great opening match with three breaks of serve in the first set, twice against Jurak. They swept the first set, with an excellent display in their service games; Shibahara, hit eight consecutive aces in two games. During the match, at 5-0, the Slovenian Klepac began to feel discomfort in her back so he requested assistance medical.
Before starting the second set, Klepac asked to be treated by the physio for the second time in the match. Although the Japanese always maintained control of the game, it got a little tight when European duo – after losing seven games consecutive – managed to get on the scoreboard, to later break the service of Aoyama and take the lead. However, Klepac immediately lost her serve and the score was tied. The games went back and forth until 5-4, when Jurak failed to hold her serve and with a break against, they delivered the set that ended 6-4. In total, the losing team gave up five service games which ultimately defined the match.
The best player of the match was undoubtedly Ena Shibahara, who had total control of her serve. It was Aoyama and Shibahara’s second win this year – they also defeated them at the tournament in Miami.
So far, the Japanese team is the momentary leader of their group with a 1-0 record, while Jurak and Klepac have a 0-1 record.