Kenyan tennis sensation Angella Okutoyi has captivated fans worldwide with her stunning victory over top-ranked player Mayar Sherif, propelling her into the African Games final. Angella Okutoyi (Left) beat Egypt’s Mayar Sherif (right) to proceed to the African Games final. How did Angella Okutoyi win? Okutoyi faced off against Egypt’s Sherif, the 2019 African Games Women’s Singles Champion, in a marathon semi-final match that lasted over four hours. Despite Sherif’s formidable global ranking of 70, Okutoyi, seeded fourth at 532, displayed remarkable tenacity. Sherif took the lead in the first set with a 7-5 score. However, Okutoyi mounted an impressive comeback to clinch the second set by the same score. The third set was a nail-biting affair, with Okutoyi initially trailing 0-3. Yet, she rallied to even the score at 3-3 and then 4-4. The set ended in a 6-6 draw, leading to a tiebreaker where Okutoyi emerged victorious. A clip shared by the International Tennis Federation captured the momentous occasion, showing fans cheering as Okutoyi secured her win. “The moment World No. 532 Angella Okutoyi claimed the biggest win of her career after defeating World No. 70 Mayar Sherif to reach the African Games final!” @itftennis captioned the clip. The stage is now set for what promises to be a captivating final, where Okutoyi will face Lamis Abdelaziz, another skilled player from Egypt, this coming Thursday. The prodigy’s journey to the final has not been easy. She earned a bye in her first round, followed by victories against Zambia’s Naomi Chileshe and Egypt’s Mostafa Rafaat in subsequent matches. She then beat Morocco’s Aya Elaouni, earning her a spot in the semi-finals. Notably, Okutoyi has already made history as the first Kenyan to secure a Grand Slam title in the girls’ juniors category at Wimbledon, England, alongside her Dutch partner Rose Marie. Angella Okutoyi awarded KSh 1 million TUKO.co.ke previously reported that Okutoyi was awarded KSh 1 million by insurer Britam for becoming the first Kenyan to win a Wimbledon title. The 18-year-old received the award at the Britam Tower on Wednesday, July 19, while in the company of her twin sister, Roselida Asumwa. The cheque, as seen on posts by Britam on its social media pages, was awarded to Okutoyi by Britam’s Strategy and Investor Relations Director, Catherine Karita.
by Brandy Kemunto