Alina Charaeva completes comeback against Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin

Armenia’s Alina Charaeva made a successful start at the Korea Open, a WTA 250 tournament in Seoul. The world No. 121 defeated Sofia Kenin, ranked 106th, in the opening round.

Charaeva lost the first set 3–6 but managed to turn the match around. The Armenian representative won the second set on a tie-break, 7–6 (7–4), before taking the deciding set 6–4.

Alina Charaeva def. Sofia Kenin 3–6, 7–6 (7–4), 6–4.

Kenin is the 2020 Australian Open champion and a former world No. 4.

In the second round, Charaeva will face sixth seed Anna Bondar of Hungary, who is ranked 69th in the world. The victory over Kenin and her place in the round of 16 will help Charaeva earn valuable ranking points at a WTA Tour event.

Another Armenian representative, Elina Avanesyan, was also expected to compete in Seoul but withdrew from the tournament. Her withdrawal may have been caused by an injury sustained during her recent match against Charaeva, although the exact reason has not been officially announced.