Rwanda’s hopes of progressing beyond the first round of the ongoing Rwanda Open were dashed on Wednesday after Etienne Niyigena lost to fourth seed Corentin Denolly in straight sets at the RP Kigali/Kicukiro Ecology Tennis Club. Niyigena, who entered the main draw as a wildcard, struggled to match Denolly’s pace and consistency, with the Frenchman cruising to a 6-1, 6-2 victory to advance to the second round. The defeat came 24 hours after compatriot Claude Ishimwe also exited the tournament in the opening round, losing 6-3, 6-2 to American Preston Brown. Niyigena’s defeat means no Rwandan player has progressed beyond the first round of the Kigali M25 since the tournament was introduced in 2022. For Denolly, the victory marked the start of his bid for the M25 title in Kigali. ALSO READ: Ishimwe exits Rwanda Open in first round, doubles matches halted by rain Elsewhere, top seed Max Houkes began his campaign with a convincing 6-1, 6-2 victory over Malaysia’s Darrshan Suresh. He will face Burundian Allan Gatoto in the second round on Thursday. Zambia’s Benjamin Lock also advanced to the second round after defeating Mexico’s Rafael De Alba 6-3, 6-3, joining Burundi’s Gatoto among the African players through to the next stage. India’s Caheer Warik defeated Kenya’s Kael Shalin Shah 6-4, 7-5, while American Noah Schachter pushed second seed [name/result as provided] before Warik eventually secured a 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory in three sets. Mexico’s Rodrigo Alujas also advanced after beating Zambia’s Mehuli Don Ayanda 6-3, 6-3. Belgian Niklas Grunewald defeated India’s Aniketh Venkataraman 6-2, 6-3, while third seed Calvin Hemery eased past Luxembourg’s Louis Van Herck 6-1, 6-3. South Africa’s Alec Beckley recovered from losing the opening set to beat American Axel Nefve 4-6, 6-2, 6-2. Germany’s Marlon Vankan also secured a comfortable victory, defeating Chetanna Amadike 6-0, 6-2. Round of 16 matches CENTER COURT 10:00AM: Max Houkes (NED) Vs Allan Gatoto (BDI) Not before 11:00AM: Caheer Warik (IND) Vs Florent Bax (FRA) COURT ONE 10:00AM: Benjamin Lock (ZIM) Vs Toufik Sahtali (ALG) Not before 11:00AM: Rodrigo Arujas (Mex) Vs Calvin Hemery (FRA) COURT TWO 10:00AM: Dev Javia (IND) Vs Preston Brown (USA) Not before 11:00AM: Corentin Denolly (FRA) Vs Manuel Plunger (ITA) COURT THREE 10:00AM: Niklas Grunewald (GER) Vs Alec Beckley (RSA) Not before 11:00AM: Marlon Vankan (GER) Vs Yshai Oliel (ISR)
