McCartney Kessler rallied for a 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 victory against Spain’s Cristina Bucsa in the first round of the Toray Pan Pacific Open Tennis event Monday in Tokyo.

Kessler leveled the match with a service break to win the second set and broke Bucsa twice more in the third set to win in two hours and 24 minutes. Up next for the American is sixth-seeded Czech Linda Noskova.

In the only match with a seeded player, Czech No. 8 Karolina Muchova was leading compatriot Marketa Vondrousova 6-2, 1-0 when the latter retired due to injury.

Australia’s Maya Joint stormed back for a 1-6, 7-6 (5), 6-2 victory over Viktorija Golubic of Switzerland and France’s Varvara Gracheva also came from behind for a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 defeat of China’s Xinyu Wang. Russia’s Anna Kalinskaya rolled 6-3, 6-1 over the Netherlands’ Suzan Lamens and Germany’s Eva Lys crushed Katie Boulter of England 6-2, 6-1.

Guangzhou Open

Slovenia’s Veronika Erjavec knocked off third-seeded Tatjana Maria of Germany 6-4, 6-7 (7), 6-2 in first-round action in Guangzhou, China.

Seventh-seeded Francesca Jones of England also met an early exit, losing 6-4, 6-4 to Chinese wild card Xiyu Wang in just under two hours.

Also in the first round, Italy’s Elisabetta Cocciaretto outlasted France’s Diane Parry 6-4, 6-7 (7), 6-2.

–Field Level Media