Angella Okutoyi has won the doubles event at 2022 Wimbledon, becoming the first Kenyan in history to attain such a feat, The Trumpet gathered.
The 18-year-old in partnership with Dutch Rose Marie Nijkamp defeated unseeded Canadians, Kayla Cross and Victoria Mboko, in a three-set encounter to win the girls’ doubles title.
According to the match report, Okutoyi and Nijkamp in the three-set thriller lost the first set 3-6 but dominated the remaining two sets, 6-4 11-9 to edge their opponent to the crown.
“It’s great for me to be the first Kenyan to win a Grand Slam and to reach a final in a Grand Slam,” Okutoyi said according to BBC Sport Africa.
“I’m now able to inspire most players from Kenya and Africa. I’m able to put a belief in them that they can also achieve it.
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“It doesn’t matter the background you come from or where you’ve been, it’s just the belief and the dream that you can achieve it. Now I believe that we’ll have more Kenyans here for sure,” the Kenyan added.
Okutoyi was raised under the tutelage of her grandmother after her own mother passed on. She added that Mary, her grandmother, will be excited by the good news.
She continued: “She will be over the moon, she will be so happy for sure.
“She will be so happy. And I’m happy that I’m able to put a smile on her face,” Okutoyi said.
Her triumph in the Grass Court event succeeds her inexperience despite being her first time in the event.
She said, “This is my first time in Wimbledon and now I’m starting to love grass,”
“It doesn’t matter about the surface, just the belief you have in yourself, you can play on any surface. So yeah, I’m happy to play on grass for sure,” Okutoyi added elatedly.
Following her victory, the first Kenyan to win at All England Club revealed that she moves away from the juniors to challenge in senior events.
She said, “Ever since I was a kid, my goal was to see myself playing at the big stages, win as many Grand Slams as possible and to be the first Kenyan to be in a Grand Slam,” she said. “So for me, I believe that that’s going to happen.
“I have the drive to do it because my grandmother is my drive. I’m really happy that I have a person who I can look up to because she’s everything to me. So I know that I can do this. And I hope for the best in the future,” she added.
BBC Africa reports that Okutoyi had never played on grass before last week when she lost in the opening round of the girls’ singles.
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