Up-and-coming Misaki Doi gave Japan a perfect start as they led 2-0 against Argentina on the first day of the Fed Cup World Group II play-off on Saturday. The 20-year-old, who reached the third round at Wimbledon at her first attempt, whitewashed Maria Irigoyen 6-0, 6-0 in the opener of the best-of-five contest in the Japanese city of Kobe.
Ayumi Morita followed her with a solid 6-2, 6-3 victory over Mailen Auroux in the second singles. "This is my second experience in the Fed Cup. I lost in the Asia/Oceania event in Thailand against Uzbekistan because of a muscle cramp, so I really wanted to win today," said Doi.
"I did my best to prepare. It was not easy playing against another left-hander, but I tried not to think about it too much. I just tried to play my game." Irigoyen said: "I was really nervous. Doi was very calm with the home-court advantage. I just couldn't do anything today." After reverse singles matches on Sunday, Rika Fujiwara and Kurumi Nara will play the doubles against Irigoyen and Auroux.
The World Group II play-off was originally scheduled for April but the earthquake and tsunami and ensuing nuclear emergency in northern Japan forced its postponement. The two countries have an even 3-3 record but Argentina have won the last three ties. The winners will be promoted to World Group II along with Belarus, Slovenia and Switzerland next year.
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