Coume makes cut in second Aussie tourney

Coume Kaga is in the main draw of the girls U12 singles event of the 2017 Rod Laver Queensland Junior Championships in Brisbane, Australia. (Contributed Photo)

Come Kaga has yet to drop a game in the 2017 Rod Laver Queensland Junior Championships in Brisbane, Australia.

Coume is playing in the girls U12 singles and doubles and gained a 3-0 mark in the qualification for the singles event. She debuted in the tournament with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Leah Tyrell Tuuga last Wednesday at the Ambiwerra Tennis Centre and then had back-to-back wins on the same day after topping Tina Elle Waine, 6-1, 6-3. Yesterday morning, Kaga downed Grace Darcy, 6-4, 6-2, to make the grade for the main draw.

The younger Kaga had to go through the qualifier, as 80 players from Australia, New Zealand, and the Grand Slam Development Fund Touring Team (Pacific Oceania) were entered in the division. Games in the main draw started yesterday afternoon with Coume scheduled to duel Ava Edmonds. The 11-year-old Coume and her teammate Clara Cwajgenbaum of New Caledonia were also set to play in the main draw of the doubles against Georgia Tan and Jessie Vo yesterday. Coume and Cwajgenbaum advanced to the doubles finals of their first tournament in Brisbane, the 2017 Rod Laver Lead.

Over at the David Turbayne Tennis Centre, Coume’s sister, Conatsu split her first two games in the girls U14 singles qualifier, which had 79 players. Conatsu bowed to Elana Nasr, 1-6, 2-6, to miss the main draw. The older Kaga dropped to the consolation bracket where she beat Alice McDougall yesterday, 6-2, 6-2. Conatsu will next challenge No. 4 seed and fellow Pacific player Eleanor Schuster. Conatsu is also seeing action in the main draw of the girls U14 doubles and she and Elyssa White were slated to meet Elyse Tse and Sadheera Weerapperuma in yesterday’s Round 1 match.

In other results, Ji Min Woo got a 2-2 record after two days of playing in the boys U14 age group. He won his first match in the singles qualification, 6-0, 6-0, before losing to No. 2 seed Billy Bougoure, 3-6, 0-6. Woo was relegated to the consolation draw and registered his second shutout win after dominating Samuel Wanandi. In the doubles, Woo partnered with Maui Leflon and they fell to Jay Friend and James Sim, 2-6, 4-6, while in the singles, the former will square off against Connor Gibson this morning.

Seung Jin Paik is also playing in the U14 age group and had a 1-1 record in singles after losing to Elliot James in the qualifier, 5-7, 0-6, and beating Sebastian Huggins in the consolation bracket, 6-0, 6-2. Next up for Paik is Brandon Minette, while in the doubles, the CNMI player and Samuel Strid dropped their main draw opener to Zavier Laurie and Thomas Llewellyn, 3-6, 7-5, 8-10.