Tennis: Sun sets early at the ASB Classic

Lulu Sun (NZL). Photo: Alan Lee / www.photosport.nz

It's the same old story for women's tennis in New Zealand.

The crowd at today's women's ASB Classic draw left bitterly disappointed, as Kiwi hopeful Lulu Sun crashed out in the first round, despite coming in as a genuine contender for the overall title.

The world number 40 and fourth seed went down 6-3 3-6 6-3 against Canadian Rebecca Marino in an admittedly entertaining match, albeit one punctuated by a lengthy rain delay.

Sun - who switched allegiance from Switzerland to New Zealand earlier this year - started the match strongly with two aces, but found trouble from then on finding the mark with her forehand. Marino broke to lead 3-1 and played the more consistent tennis to take out the first set.

The rain came just after the start of the start of the second set and the break seemed to favour Sun, who fought back to take the second set 6-3 and looked to be on course to take the match easily.

Rebecca Marino (CAN) plays a shot against Lulu Sun (NZL). Photo: Alan Lee / www.photosport.nz

But Marino came firing back with a love game to open the third set, then three break points off Sun's serve to take a 2-0 lead. Sun broke back but a bad double fault set up another break for Marino to make it 3-1, which became 5-1. Despite some late Sun heroics that kept the big crowd on the edge of their seats when she saved two match points, it was just a matter of time before the Canadian closed out the match.

The result will be a very hollow feeling for NZ tennis fans, who have been waiting a generation for a contender in the women's singles. Sun will go on to bigger and better things, unfortunately we'll have to wait another year to see if she can do it on home soil.

In the day's earlier match on centre court, Danish fifth seed Clara Tauson advanced safely with a 6-2 6-3 win over Italian Lucrezia Stefani.